Changing Seasons
by judis
Summary: The season is changing, along with Hiccup and the life he knew.
1. Chapter 1

Hiccup sighed when the first snowflakes started falling. He was sitting by the lake, fishing, as Toothless slept beside him. Berk was not a charming place to live; it snowed 9 months of the year and it hailed the other three. Suffice to say that the hailing period was over. Hiccup adjusted his metal leg before preparing to hop back on Toothless; he could tell that the snow bothered the dragon because he was stirring in his sleep before waking up with a start.

'Easy there bud, it's just snow. Let's go home'

Toothless lowered his head so Hiccup could pet it for a moment before they flew back to the village. It was getting too cold to fly - the wind felt like a slap on his freckled face and his auburn hair was over his eyes most of the time. As they approached the village a few people pointed at him as they passed, but no one tried to approach him this time. The citizens of Berk had idolized Hiccup for a while after the whole 'Dragons are Friends' thing, but everything was slowly going back to normal. It was nice for some time, but soon Hiccup had got that same feeling he'd always had, like he didn't belong, that they all treated him differently. And Toothless made them uneasy, after all, 300 years of fear were not so easily erased, no matter how friendly the Night Fury tried to be.

A few weeks after dragons became a essential part of life in Berk, Hiccup's dad remarried and Hiccup thought it was best to build a house for himself and move out to give them privacy, one that could also become a home to Toothless. It took a while, but he was proud of his work. Hiccup liked to create, build and plan, and now that he didn't need to prove himself to anyone anymore, he didn't see the need to fight that much, being hesitant about mindless viking violence, though he still had their traditional bravery.

Hiccup saw that Astrid was waiting for him outside his house door, a map under her arm. Her hair was in a side braid and she was dressed with full war gear, which made Hiccup curious because there was no sign of foreign attack lately and they had stocked plenty of food for the winter. Toothless landed in front of her and Hiccup got down. It had taken him some time to get used to his new leg but he seldom fell anymore. He made a gesture for Astrid to follow him inside.

'What's with the map? Is something wrong?'

She took a deep breath and slammed the map open on the kitchen table. Hiccup jumped.

'Listen Hiccup, something came up. Our guards were flying through the area around us and they seemed to have found a small village, just after Dragon Island. They are few people there, weak and rich. Some of us are planning to take the ships and invade, winter would be much easier for us. Are you coming?' - Her voice was hard but her eyes were hesitant.

Hiccup scratched the back of his head, which he did often when he was uncomfortable. The idea of invading a village that never did them harm didn't sit well with him. But how to explain this to Astrid without hurting her feelings, or worse, summoning her wrath? Their relationship had been rocky lately. She needed to be constantly impressed, wanted him to make a kill, just to show the 'vicking strength' to the rest of the village. Astrid fell in love with the cool Hiccup, the hero, the dragon rider. She did not fall in love with the skinny loser with a missing leg. They were both parts of him, but she didn't understand that. Hiccup felt that she was constantly trying to change him.

'Why is this necessary though? We have a lot of food stored for the winter, Astrid. I don't think this is a good idea.' - He said hesitantly. Her jaw locked in an angry gesture.

'For Odin, Hiccup! Don't be dim, this is a great opportunity...remember when you told me about making a mark in the world? This could be our mark, don't you see? Vikings, the great conquerors! With Toothless on our side, we can't lose!'

At the mention of Toothless, Hiccup felt a boiling rage. The Night Fury was not a tool, he was not a weapon for people with petty ambitions; he was his friend and Hiccup suspected he liked fighting just as little as Hiccup did. They were more alike than anyone knew. He gave her a hard look.

'You want to leave a mark, huh Astrid? No, I think that what you want to leave is a scar, a horrible scar on the viking story, and that makes me sick!'

'So you're the only one that gets to be the hero?!' - She screamed in his face so loudly that Toothless put his head through the window to look at the fight. - 'Huh? Answer me! Why do I always have to be second best to you? To _you?_ I was supposed to be the best dragon killer in the village, before you screwed that up. I was supposed to be the best rider then, but you beat me even with your stupid leg! I can't take this! I need my own victory, and you can't stop me." - She picked up the map and left the house in a run.

Hiccup sighed and Toothless looked at him with big, curious eyes. He knew he had made the right decision. No, he wouldn't stop Astrid, but he wouldn't help her either. They were no longer on the same page - maybe they never were.

'Let's go to bed bud, I have a feeling tomorrow will be a long day.'

Before putting out the lamp, Hiccup shot the window one last look; the snow was falling pretty hard now. Toothless was already snoring gently on the floor beside him. He fell asleep almost instantly, the white of the snow still fresh behind his eyelids.

Jack woke up slowly, lazily... the snow bank he was buried under felt especially fluffy. He almost wished he could lie there all day, but today was the first day of September and Berk was in dire need of a good snow in. He stood up and snow fell from his face and shoulders to the ground. He stretched his tall body and shook a bit of snow from his whiteish hair and eyelashes.

A devilish, boyish grin played upon his features as he raised his staff, and with a shake of it, he made it so that lots of beautiful, different and unique snowflakes begin to fall from Berk's blue sky. He had a good feeling about this snow fall, and could already begin to imagine where all the kids would play in the fresh snow.

Looking around, he realized he was sleeping behind some house in the village, and the people living in the house were still probably asleep. The sun was about to rise. Jack never missed a sunrise. A mix of yellow, red and brown lights rose above the horizon and Jack took it all in with his ice blue eyes. It never ceased to amaze him that humans missed something so beautiful like the rising of the sun. Humans, he thought, have a bad habit of having the wrong priorities.

Jack's priorities at the moment, however, were to have fun and make this the best snowfall since he could remember. He was feeling very good, and wanted to outdo himself. A laught of pure joy that could have echoed across the street escaped his lips, and for once he was glad no one could hear him. He looked at the sun once more and started to work.


	2. Chapter 2

Hiccup woke up with Toothless licking his face, which happened pretty much everyday in the early morning. It was his friend's favorite time to fly around and practice new moves. Hiccup sat up, and was mid way through stretching when he heard a commotion outside. He vaguely caught words like goodbye and wishes of good luck. His stomach twisted in a knot; if he had to guess - and he didn't particularly want to - he would say that Astrid and her Army of Crazy was ready to depart.

The snow was falling pretty heavily, but it wasn't settling yet. He opened the door, and with Toothless behind him, headed over to the shore. Astrid didn't even spare him a second glance, which was expected; but his father was by her side, which wasn't.

Hiccup knew that his father loved him, that he was even proud of him at times; but it seemed that no matter what Hiccup did, his father would never respect him, would never see him as an equal viking. He was doomed to be a child to his eyes. They made eye contact over Astrid's head, and his Father simply sighed at the sight of Hiccup looking from afar, Toothless loyally at his side.

The dragon made a frustated sound when he noticed the heavy snow. Hiccup suspected that the Night Fury felt angry at the vulnerability snow gave him. Toothless liked to be able to hide when he chose to.

"Come on, I don't want to see this. Let's get some breakfast and then maybe if the snow stops, we'll fly later ok?"

Toothless agreed, which he showed by licking Hiccup's face. They left together, laughing. And Hiccup didn't look back the departing ships, or at Astrid, or at his father.

Jack was bored already. The snow was falling as it should, everything was cold and perfect and the ice would be sticking to the ground soon. He saw some sort of movement in the village in the early morning, like they were making a trip somewhere. Jack hoped they left the kids behind, it would be a lame winter if there were no kids to play in the snow.

He was walking around the village, looking for people to prank, when he saw that some elders were having breakfast by a group fire. That wasn't what grabbed his attention though, but the huge black dragon hanging out by the fire, apparently really happy with itself as he wolfed down fish after fish. The elders around the dragon looked uneasy, the only person actually petting it was a skinny boy. Jack thought that he must be very brave to do that.

He came closer to the group, the fire was protected by a temporary roof of some sort. Jack thought that maybe he should tone it down on the snow. He started paying attention to the snow flakes patterns on his staff.

"Jack Frost is really doing it today. It's been snowing since sunrise."

At the mention of his name his head snapped to attention. The oldest lady there was preparing some sort of soup, and she was telling his story as she did so. Jack could tell she didn't believe it any on it, otherwise she would have seen him standing there among them. He needed to pay more attention to Vikings; their stories were dangerously close to the truth.

"Who's Jack Frost?" The skinny boy asked while he ate. He seemed distracted, it seemed his question was out of mock politeness, not genuine interest. Jack fought the urge to throw a snowball at his face.

"It's just a story dear. Long ago people talked about an invisible boy, one that brought cold storms and laughter with him. Kids loved to hear about it, even though everyone knows he's not real..."

"Excuse me?" - Jack couldn't help himself - "I think this snow is pretty real, lady!"

It was useless and he knew it, but there was nothing more he could do. And maybe, just maybe, this woman actually knew more about his story than he did. Sometimes Jack found himself screaming at the Man on the Moon for hours to no end, demanding to know where he came from, why he was the way he was. He wanted an answer, a reason, a punchline...anything.

Shaking his head, he sat down next to the skinny boy with the dragon, the boy was paying more attention to Jack's story now. Jack was listening in too, and disappointment hit him hard when he realized she knew just as little as he did. What a waste of time. Jack sighed, looked around and stood up. He'd heard enough.

"He must be lonely." - The skinny boy barely whispered.

Jack froze. He looked at the boy like he was seeing him for the first time. The viking seemed to have noticed people were looking at him, so he scratched the back of his head and stammered, obviously regretting his words.

"I- I mean, don't you think? No one sees him, no one believes him, no one _cares. _Can you imagine living like that? Like a ghost, but not really?"

Silence fell upon the group, the dragon looked at the boy with worry in his yellow cat-like eyes. Jack was speechless.

"It's just a story, boy. Stop being so dramatic." - The old lady said, annoyance clear in her voice.

The boy's shoulders fell and he sighed as if he was used to such treatment. He stood up, mounted on his dragon and they flew away so fast, the fire almost went out. Jack watched him disappear in the late morning sky. Looking at Berk, Jack thought that maybe he was too kind, he wanted enough snow to play in. He got back to work, but not before looking at the dragon and his rider one more time over his shoulder.

The best thing for Hiccup's sour mood was flying alone with Toothless. The snow proved to be a challenge, but a fun one at that. They came up with risky moves that relied on intuition instead of sight. Hiccup could feel himself relaxing and enjoying himself. He managed to get Astrid and his dad out of his head, though he was still thinking about the story of Jack Frost.

Hiccup lost track of time; by the time he actually managed to get back to the village, the sun was setting in the sky. Snow was had fallen pretty heavily all afternoon and though there were now about 3 inches of snow on the ground, the falling snow was lighter. Toothless landed by the lake, which was almost completely frozen already. Hiccup slid off the Night Fury very carefully, as he didn't know how his leg would handle the new environment, but as he stood up completely, he felt it wouldn't be a big problem - well, a bigger problem than it already was. Toothless was still put out by the snow, but he needed to get used to it somehow...

"hey buddy, wanna build a snowman?" - Toothless lifted one eyebrow, half curious and half hesitant, Hiccup laughed and started to gather snow with his hands at the dragon looked over his shoulder.

Jack saw when the dragon and the boy landed by the river, he was sitting on a rock, drawing patters on the snow with his staff. It was the first time Jack noticed the boy's metal leg, and figured that he probably limped quite badly. So he made it that the snow around the viking was more firm, so the boy wouldn't slip and fall.

He got closer to them, and noticed that they were so alike it was actually scary. The dragon and the boy had similar green eyes, and cool demeanor. They seemed adventurous, if they were out flying in this weather all afternoon. Jack stepped closer to them; they were making a snowman. Well, at least the boy was trying to; the dragon was more interested in blowing fire and seeing the snow melt around him, probably to rest without being disturbed by the cold.

Jack chuckled at the finished project; the snowman was awkwardly made, but it had character, in a way, the crooked eyes and the weird sticks he used for arms were amusing.

"Toothless, I think I will call this one Jack Frost." - The dragon's ears went up in a sign of understanding. Hiccup looked at the snowman one more time before taking a deep breath and saying.

"I'm probably crazy for doing this, I have definitely lost it..." - He hesitated before making a fancy bow to the snowman and Jack chuckled at his unecessary formalities. - "Ok, so, I heard your story today and, just for now, I'm going to pretend that this is normal and that I'm not talking to a pile of snow and that I don't know how the weather works. Just for a moment, I will believe in you, Jack Frost, spirit of playfulness and children and ice. Just for a moment, let's feel like we're both seen... deal?"

The boy closed his eyes and touched his forehead to the snowman's. The dragon looked at his owner for a moment before closing his eyes also. Jack was standing beside the boy, wondering what was going through his mind. Jack's breath felt short and he whispered before closing his own blue eyes.

"Thank you"

Hiccup screamed, falling backwards on his butt. There was someone next to him, someone breathing. A tall boy with white hair and even whiter skin, his eyes were closed as if praying.

"Where did you come from!?" - Hiccup's voice came out at a higher pitch than he intended. The tall boy's eyes snapped open and his chin dropped

"You- you can see me?"

**Thanks everyone who is reading this story! Reviews mean a lot and would help a great deal haha. I know this chapter was a little slow and that it ended on a cliffhanger but chapter 3 is coming and it will be better I promise! I felt the need to set up Hiccup's life before he and Jack could interact. Reminder that this fic is rated M and I will let you know before hand which are the M chapters, so if you don't like reading it, just skip over it. xx judis**


	3. Chapter 3

"You- you can see me?!" - Jack was feeling feverish, he couldn't contain his excitement. Someone was seeing him! _Believing in him. _Warmth spread through him and it was the best thing he ever remembered feeling. Hiccup, on the other hand, went from freaked out to weirdly calm. He stood up, walked towards the snowman and said.

"Toothless, would you do me a favor and hit me over the head with this stick?" - He held up what was meant to be the snowman's arm - "Don't hesitate, please. I will hold still." - His voice was a mix of bored curiosity and anxiety. Jack was shocked that the boy actually believed he was imagining the whole thing. What a complete and utter _idiot._

"Hey, Viking! You're not crazy! You can see me because you believe! Look, I can explain everything, just let me-" - He took a step closer to the skinny boy but stopped abruptly when the dragon placed himself between them, growling angrily at Jack. He put his hands up in a sign of peace. Hiccup looked back and forth at the two of them.

"Wait, Toothless, you can see him too?" - The dragon held the defensive position, but wiggled his tail in confirmation. - "H-How is this possible?" Jack bit his tongue in impatience, he was too excited to calmly explain everything.

"The stories were true! My name is Jack Frost, I really control the ice, but people can't see me because they think I'm just a story... like, like I'm a ghost, but not _really"._

Hiccup blushed, embarassed, at hearing his own words thrown back at him. He wouldn't be so blunt if he knew Jack was listening. He felt uneasy, he didn't like things that couldn't be explained. And no one could explain what was happening to him now. If Toothless was seeing him too then that meant he wasn't insane - at least not yet - could it really be _possible? _The Night Fury took a step closer to the "threat". Hiccup put a hand on the dragon's side.

"Toothless, calm down. It's fine, no need to hurt him."

"Ha, like your dragon could actually hurt me." - Jack said mockinly, his good mood made him smirk.

"I wouldn't challenge him, Jack Frost, and his name is Toothless; my name's Hiccup, by the way... Uh, welcome to Berk I guess? I see you've been busy" - He pointed at the now frozen lake to prove his point.

"Hiccup? That's your name? Are you serious? That is the dumbest name I ever heard. Well, no, scratch that, the dumbest name I ever heard would be Bunnymund, but yours is a close second."

Hiccup didn't even hesitate. Weird supernatural beings appearing out of thin air? Scary. Friendly banter and sarcasm? That, he could handle.

"Funny, I was just thinking that _Jack_ sounds awfully like the sound dragons make when they are about to barf. Toothless, please demonstrate".

The dragon made a throaty sound that could have been a laugh, which was then followed by gagging sounds that were suspiciously similar to the word 'Jack'.

"Ack, ack, a-ack" - The Night Fury circled around Jack, making the sound in a mock imitation of his name while Hiccup bursted into laughter.

"You still think you're so much better than him now, _barf boy?"._

Jack pouted obnoxiously, but wasn't able to hide the amusement from his voice. He pointed his staff between the boy and the dragon playfully.

"I know the perfect way to settle this... how about a race? Me against you and your pet alligator."

Hiccup locked eyes with Toothless for a second and could see that his friend agreed to the challenge. He moved to settle on top of the Night Fury, getting in position to take flight. He looked over at Jack, who now seemed to be stretching in preparation.

"First of all, don't call him "pet alligator", I will not take responsability for his actions if you do; second of all, you're on! Make a full lap around the the village and the first one to get back to this lake wins!" Hiccup haven't felt this excited in months. He would not lose.

"Deal! But friendly reminder, _Hiccup_, that your dragon has been flying all day, so he's probably tired. And also, now that you believe in me, I feel stronger, like my mind is sharper somehow..." - He seemed momentarily distracted by this newfound knowledge, but then shook his head and continued - "I mean, I could give you a minute ahead, to make it fair, you know." - He gave Hiccup a crooked smile that was begging to be wiped off from his face.

"How about you spend less time talking, and more time flying?" - He locked his metal foot on Toothless's saddle and took off the ground in one swift movement. He was a couple feet off the ground when he heard Jack's laugh following him.

He saw Jack from the corner of his eye, he seemed to be sliding through the air without difficulty, it was as if the wind was pushing him on, he must have practiced a lot. Hiccup wondered how old he was; after all, stories always began somewhere. He shook his head when he almost hit a tree, he'd gone too low. He needed to focus if he wanted to win.

It was remarkably easy for Jack, he didn't even hesitate as they both took a sharp turn over the west side of Berk; Jack knew this place like the back of his hand. He watched his opponents with curiosity; Hiccup led the dragon flawlessly, as if he could read the dragon's mind and vice-versa. He seemed to treat the dragon, uh, Toothless, like more than a pet. Anyone could see that they were fiercely loyal to each other. In a way only best friends could be.

He wondered what it would feel like, to have someone by your side that you trusted completely, someone who was always there for you. Maybe Hiccup and Toothless could be that someone for Jack. He felt hopeful and let his thoughts wander; it wasn't long before he noticed the lake again though, and, looking back, he saw that they were behind him; but not too far back, Jack picked up speed.

They were almost there, Hiccup spoke encouraging words to Toothless as they got closer; Jack was a little bit ahead, they needed to go full speed if they wanted to beat him. He looked back at them and gave them a wave, Hiccup could see his stupid smirk from afar.

"You know, Toothless, if you want to blast him, I won't judge you." - He said jokingly, it was obvious that they had already lost; there was no way they could beat Jack, he was too close to the lake now. Toothless, however, wasn't so keen on admitting defeat. He blew a purple ball of power towards Jack, in a way that wouldn't harm him, only slow him down. Hiccup gasped anyway.

"Jack! Duck!"

Jack looked back at the sound of Hiccup's voice, he couldn't make out the words he said; but he didn't really have to. He managed to dodge Toothless's attack at the last second. However, he lost balance at the sharp movement and dropped his staff. Jack was somewhat close to the ground, but still landed harshly on a big pile of snow by the lake.

Hiccup saw him fall. He stopped breathing, they were close to the lake now. Toothless landed with a thump, looking at the pile of snow Jack was buried under with guilt in his yellow eyes. Hiccup ran towards it, and saw that Jack had landed face first. He thought he heard the sound of crying; he panicked, and grabbed Jack's shoulders to turn him face up. It wasn't Jack's crying that he saw though, but his laughter. Jack was laughing loudly, shaking his head to clear the snow from his hair.

"Did you see that!? That dodge, come on Hiccup, you have to admit that was _cool!_" - He looked at Toothless, who was watching from a small distance - "Nice shot Toothless! Try not to burn my hair off the next time though, aim for the shoulder or something!" - Hiccup couldn't help but laugh along with him, all his worries melted away. He helped the taller boy get up, and Jack suddenly stopped laughing. He looked down at their joined hands.

"Wait, you can touch me? Your hand... I can actually feel it! I- I don't- this never happened before! It's so warm! Wait, does mine feel cold to you?!" - Jack was to excited to wait for a response, he was jumping up and down happily. Hiccup felt embarassed and a little bit sad for him, how lonely did you have to be so happy to be holding someone's hand? But Hiccup felt good holding his at the same time, so maybe he underestimated the power of the gesture. He felt a little odd so he decided to change the subject.

"Uh, where's your staff?" - He let go of Jack's hand to scratch the back of his head. He looked to his right and saw that it had landed right in the middle of the frozen lake. He sighed.

"I'll get it. It's the least I can do after Toothless almost burned your eyebrows off." - He put his good foot on the ice first, to make sure it was firm; he managed to get halfway through to the staff before he heard Jack make a horrible choking sound. He looked back.

His head was exploding. Jack screamed, his vision went black; he felt like he might pass out

"_You're funny, Jack!"_

"I'm almost there Jack, dont worry, I'm always careful!" - Hiccup said to put him at ease, Jack was looking horrified at the side of the lake. Toothless tilted his head and was looking at Jack with curiosity.

"_Be careful."_

"_Hahahaha, we will!" - He said as the took the little girl's hand in his. His...sister?_

Another sharp pang on his head, he fell to his knees on the snow. He grabbed his head to stop the pain, but with no success. The images kept coming. He felt like he was drowning.

Hiccup had the staff in his hand, he turned to get back and saw Jack kneeling on the snow, screaming and holding his head.

"Jack! What's wrong?! Are you ok?!" - He slowly made his way to Jack, the lake was slippery and his stupid leg wasn't helping him move any faster.

"_It's ok, it's ok, don't look down. Just look at me."_

"_Jack, I'm scared!"_

"_I know, I know, but you are gonna be alright... we're gonna have a little fun instead!"_

"_No, we're not!"_

"_Would I trick you?"_

"_... I promise, you're gonna be fine. You have to believe in me... It's as easy as one, two, three."_

"_Three!" - He pushed the girl aside, she was safe. He laughed in relief and she smiled back. Then he felt it, beneath his feet, something was horribly wrong._

"Jack! Snap out of it! Toothless, help me! We need to get him back home!" - Hiccup was trying to move him on top of the Night Fury; he never felt so scared, Jack looked like he might pass out at any second - "Jack! Can you hear me!?"

"_JACK!" _

_It was cold and dark. And he was scared. The girl's face is the last thing he thinks about. And then..._

Darkness.


	4. Chapter 4

The first thing Jack saw when he woke up was a pair of big, yellow eyes looking right into his blue ones. It took him a second to realize it was Toothless, and it took him a second more to realize he was lying on a bed. He looked around the small room, it was well built and nice looking; there was a huge blanket nest by the bed, where Jack figured Toothless slept. A small fire was going, Jack guessed it was already pretty late into the night. It was very dark outside. He saw his staff by the foot of his bed. Something tugged at his mind about the staff...

He gasped as it all came back to him; his memories! He had a family, a sister! He _saved _her! He understood everything now. After 300 years, he finally knew who he was. He finally knows who he is. With a smile that could probably be seen from the moon, he turned to the dragon.

"Toothless! I remember everything! I had a family, I had friends! Toothless, I was _happy! _Ahahaha!" - He sat up, grabbing his hair in disbelief. The Night Fury licked his face excitedly.

"I see you're up." - Hiccup was at the door, holding two mugs. He smiled weakly at Jack before passing him one drink. - "Are you feeling better? Me and Toothless have been taking turns watching over you all night. It will be dawn soon."

"Already? I never miss a sun rise... But that's not important, Hiccup, I remembered! When you walked onto that lake, it all came back to me. My life, my family, why the Man on the Moon chose me, it's so clear! Hiccup, I'm a _guardian." - _He excitedly took a sip from what it seemed to be some sort of hot ginger ale, it was good.

"I didn't understand about half of what you just said, I'm just glad you're feeling better. I can't explain what happened out there, it's weird." - He seemed to hesitate - "I... I have some questions. I'm not even sure you are completely real yet, to be honest."

Jack rolled his eyes - "Ask away viking, I'm in a good mood. This drink is delicious by the way, thank you."

"Yeah, that's the first question... I couldn't help noticing that you are...made of ice. Does the heat hurt you?" - He asked awkwardly, scratching the back of his head and looking at the small fire, he tried to keep it as low as possible without freezing. Jack exploded in laughter.

"I'm not made of ice!" - His laughter made Hiccup feel more awkward. Couldn't he take _anything _seriously? - "I used to be human, so I am made of whatever it is you're made of. And heat doesn't bother me, it's more... feeling cold after it's gone, you know? I can only feel cold if I've felt hot before, otherwise I'm fine. Next question!" - He finished his drink and did a backflip in the air, landing on top of Toothless's head, not that the dragon seemed to mind. The Night Fury seemed to have become more friendly towards Jack over the night. Hiccup suspected his friend still felt guilty for shooting Jack off the sky.

"You used to be human... so what are you now? Ahn, if that's not rude of me to ask." - Hiccup looked everywhere in the room except Jack's face, which was now smirking.

"I'm a spirit of sorts, your people's stories have been right about that. I am that feeling of cold neeping at your nose. Jack Frost, the spirit of playfulness and cold, the guardian of fun! You're welcome haha!" - He bowed. Hiccup snorted and said sarcastically.

"Thank you so much for gracing me with your presence, your honor! Where would I be without the restless cold? Oh, Thor, please bless the coming of Jack Frost to Berk, you know how well acquainted he is with the place!"

Jack thought of a retort, but decided not to say it. There was something bothering him ever since he arrived, maybe Hiccup would know the answer.

"Tell me Hiccup, why are there no kids around here?" - He'd been looking for children to have snowball fights with, but haven't found many.

"Oh, that? Vikings are alergic to human contact, I wouldn't take it personally." - Sarcasm was dripping from his voice, it was kind of funny to Jack, couldn't Hiccup take _anything _seriously? He liked that.

"Sarcasm suits you Hiccup, but yeah, it wouldn't be as fun anyway. Now that I know what is like to be seen, it would feel rather bland to play with kids that you are invisible to." - Jack sighed. Hiccup took a step foward, eager to put him at ease.

"I'll make them believe you! I'll tell all the village, Jack, I'm going to help you, I'll make sure you never feel invisible again." - He smiled widely, all sarcasm was gone, sincerity was evident in his emerald eyes. Hiccup noticed absent mindedly that the sun was rising.

He smiled at him, his cheeks were slightly blushed from the hot drink. Jack stopped. Something about that smile was familiar to him, the way it made him feel warm despite of what he was, Jack gasped, for as the sun rose in the sky, it cast a orange light in the room, especially on Hiccup's face. His hair shone with a mix of yellows and browns, his cheeks adding the red, and the combination reminded him of early mornings. Looking at Hiccup smiling was like looking at the sun rising. He never heard his heart beat so fast.

Jack was staring at him wordlessly, his face a mix between shocked and amazed. Hiccup felt uncomfortable with the undivided attention. The sunlight was shining in the room, it made Jack's hair look almost golden and his eyes almost brown. Hiccup thought that it made him look very...human, very _real_. The silence stretched, but it wasn't awkward; it was intense. Hiccup opened his mouth to say something, he wasn't even sure what, but Jack was faster.

"I'll make sure you never feel invisible again either, Hiccup." - His tone was serious. Hiccup felt an electrifying chill course through his body, a sudden rush to his head. His heart was beating very fast. He took another step towards Jack, never breaking eye contact. Hiccup knew it was important to keep looking at him, even though he wasn't quite sure of what was happening.

Toothless yawned suddenly, lifting his head so high that Jack almost fell backwards. They both snapped out of the moment. Jack jumped off the dragon and stood by the door.

"He must be sleepy, you two should get some rest. Thank you for watching over me." - Jack seemed uncomfortable for the first time since Hiccup had met him.

"We will, after all, I expect a race rematch tonight. I am sure Toothless is dying to beat you!" - Hiccup said playfully and Jack smiled once more.

"Just Toothless? Ha, as if sleeping all day would make a difference, I'd still win!"

"Tonight, as the sun goes down, after I'm done with work, meet us at the lake. We'll see how confident you'll be with Toothless fully rested." - Hiccup moved to throw more wood at the fire, making it stronger. Jack looked at the gesture curiously.

"I don't know about you, Jack Frost, but I am freezing." - He teased. Smiling, Jack nodded and moved to leave, after all, there was work for him to do too. But as he was reaching for the doorknob, he heard Hiccup whisper.

"Thank you"

Jack hesitated for a second, before finally opening the door and leaving the room.

Hiccup was distracted all day. He was making new saddles for the dragon trainers, even if most of them had gone with Astrid on her journey, there were always some that needed fixing and they all went to Hiccup for the job. He didn't mind, he actually liked the manual work; it allowed him to be creative and useful at the same time.

But today, the repetitive work became tedious and boring, he found himself looking forward for his race with Jack. He had never met anyone like Jack, the people of Berk weren't exactly what you would call interesting; Hiccup found his mind wandering to that moment in the room, the sun shining in Jack's eyes, and his face as he looked at Hiccup. No one had ever looked at Hiccup that way, as if he was...

Everything. Hiccup was everything to Jack now, the ice teen flew around Berk all day, making sure the snowflakes were where they supposed to be; but his thoughts had been on the skinny viking all day. Was that what it meant to be close to someone? It had been so long since he was alive, Jack didn't remember what it was like to have friends. But he figured that if he had met Hiccup then, he would remember feeling like he was feeling now. Not even another 300 years would make him forget that early morning, in his room.

Was he crazy? They had met only a day ago; and Jack was aware of how little time that was. But compared to all his life, he felt this past day was more important; more meaningful somehow, than all the days he lived before. Jack wondered, if there had been someone to else to believe in him at that moment, would he feel as strongly towards them? How much of his affection was about Hiccup and how much of it was just being seen? He longed to see him again, throwing snow balls at people didn't seem as much fun anymore. The sun was setting in the sky soon and he felt a funny feeling in his stomach at the thought of seeing Hiccup again. He flew to the lake early in antecipation.

He saw that Hiccup and Toothless were already there, the viking was feeding several fishes to the dragon. He was wearing some sort of helmet that seemed too big for his head, it was endearing. He threw a snowball at his head, making the helmet fall off.

"Hello to you too, Jack!" - Hiccup dropped the fish in front of Toothless and bent down to make a snowball of his own, his aim wasn't as good as Jack's, instead of hitting his face, he got the shoulder. Jack snickered.

"I see you're here early, are you that eager to lose? tsk, tsk" - Jack picked up Hiccup's helmet and put it on his own head. - "Oh look, it fits me better! Don't you think?"

"I think that you should shut up and get ready, I promise Toothless won't blast you this time, unless, you know, you deserve it." - He smiled mischievously at Jack before setting himself on the Night Fury. Both flew off the ground at the same moment, but this time it was different, Toothless was stronger and Jack seemed distracted. They made a lap around the lake in record time, and won with a substantial advantage. Jack was breathing heavily as he landed beside Hiccup.

"Ok, you got better, I admit. I still get to keep the helmet though." - It was still on his head, slightly crooked due to the windy flying.

"Hey! I won, so give it back!" - Hiccup tried to grab it, but Jack was faster; just getting the helmet out of his reach. - "It was my mom's! Just...give it back." - His voice sounded sad. Jack took off the helmet and put it back on Hiccup's head. Jack seemed to hesitate.

"Are your parents...around?"

"My mom died when I was little... my dad, it's a little more complicated than that. Let's just say he is busy overseas." - He said flatly. Jack pushed on.

"Siblings?"

"Nope, just me. And well, Toothless. Did you...?"

"I had a sister! I saved her." - He looked over to the frozen lake. - "The ice was too thin, we were ice skating; she almost fell... but we played hopscotch, and I fell instead. She was fine though!" - He smiled as if that was what mattered the most, as if he hasn't died because of it. Hiccup felt he wasn't just being humble, Jack was just the kind of person that put everyone first, no matter what it cost. Hiccup felt unreasonably irritated.

"That's awful! You drowned?!" - Jack was a little taken aback by his anger.

"Well, yeah. But then the Man on the Moon brought me back, he told me my name was Jack Frost; it was the only thing he told me. And that was a long time ago." - The sun had set a while ago, the moon wasn't full yey, Jack looked up at the stars patterns in the sky. Berk had particularly pretty skies.

"Still! Yes, you saved her, but who saved you?" - Hiccup took a step forward. Jack's head snapped to attention, and he looked at Hiccup with a calm demeanor, as if it were obvious.

"You did." - He punched Hiccup lightly on his shoulder - "You saved me Hiccup! Because of you I remembered everything, you are the reason I'm so happy! So don't be angry over things that no longer matter, everything that happened was supposed to happen." - He smiled and blew a snowflake that landed on Hiccup's nose.

_You did. You did...you did._ Jack's words echoed in his head, had he really saved him? Certainly not! The only thing he did was believe in him, see him. He hadn't drowned for him at a young age, his whole life ahead of him. How could he even compare them? Jack was brave, and selfless. Everything that Hiccup was not; he couldn't even confront his father! Or Astrid! Or anyone for that matter, he just accepted everything and then ended up doing something stupid. He could feel the spot on his shoulder where Jack had hit him lightly. Somehow he thought of how Astrid kissed him right after punching him, just like Jack did... he felt a warming feeling on his stomach. No, Hiccup wouldn't do something stupid, he had done plenty of that lately. Instead, he was going to do something crazy.

So he grabbed Jack's face between his hands and kissed him right on the mouth.

**AN: Thank you everyone who is reading this story, you make it better every day! Reviews and comments are appreciated. Also, I am going somewhere with this story, there is a plot twist haha it's called Changing Seasons for a reason! thank you everyone for reading it, follow my tumblr for snippets! .com xx judis**


	5. Chapter 5

The kiss was awkward and weird, and sloppy. Hiccup miscalculated and his teeth clashed painfully against Jack's. But it was also raw, and fire and sincere. He let go of him, and took two steps back to give him space, breathing heavily. He didn't know who looked more surprised; Jack or Toothless. He was torn between running away and laughing histerically, his heart felt like it was going to explode; he couldn't believe he done it! He actually kissed Jack! The guardian was still standing in the same place, but his eyes were half lidded now, his fingers against his lips. Hiccup felt uneasy with his silence.

"Look, I'm sorry Jack... maybe I should go..." - He didn't finish the sentence; Jack slammed his body against his; they both fell on the fluffly snow and Jack kissed him wildly, like he never planned on stopping. Hiccup tangled his hands on his soft hair, bringing him closer and heard him sigh in response; their tongues touched, his were cold but it was pure bliss. Jack was holding himself above Hiccup, but when he nibbled his lower lip softly, one of his hands snaked around the viking's thigh, bringing his leg up around his hip. All that Hiccup felt, thought and tasted was Jack.

Hiccup had kissed him, he could still feel the warmth of his hands on his face; every thought was driven out of his head. And then he was too far away, and he said his name and something about leaving? And before he knew it, his leg was wrapped around his waist and he was home. He got a hold of Hiccup's jaw, bringing him closer, their kisses growing more urgent. He had some hunger, a feeling he didn't quite understand. It was almost as if he wanted to be so close to him that they'd be one. Hiccup moaned softly and ran his tongue gently across Jack's lower lip. His head spun, and he gasped for air, their noses touching. The viking's eyes were unfocused, and his cheeks never looked more red, Jack felt some satisfaction on the fact that he could affect him just as much as he was affected. Hiccup smirked up at him.

"Jack?"

"Hm?"

"There's snow in my pants."

He looked down to see that when he pulled Hiccup's leg up, a little bit of snow got inside his pants, some of it had melted. He snorted with laughter at his bluntness. He got up and took his hand to help Hiccup stand too. He didn't want to let go of the boy's hand. What happened now?

Hiccup seemed to be thinking the same thing, it was getting late... should Jack sleep over at his house again? Did he have anywhere else to go? Now that he thought about it, he never asked where Jack lived or where he slept. There was so much they needed to talk about, but they would have plenty of time for that, Hiccup thought with a smile, his hand was still holding Jack's. He made a split second decision.

"Last one to get home has to wash Toothless for a week!" - Hiccup took off running to fly on the Night Fury, who was already excited to take off. It takes Jack a moment to follow, both surprise and laughter on his face. They are evenly matched as always, but Hiccup wins again.

"Ha! Some advice Jack, I would wait until Toothless is distracted to clean under his scales, he does tend to shoot first and look second!" - Hiccup joked as he stepped down from the saddle. It wasn't snowing tonight, so Toothless would sleep on the roof, as he liked best. Hiccup felt nervous about being alone with Jack in the house. He hadn't said anything the whole race, and was quiet even know. Jack simply looked at Hiccup, seeming to be nervous in antecipation. The house was warm, Hiccup heard his stomach growl. He let Jack get in first.

"I'm making fish on a stick, would you like some?"

Jack finally spoke - "As appeatizing as it sounds, I think I'll pass. Thanks." - He sat on the bed and looked around - "I usually sleep under snow banks."

"Oh. Is that comfortable?"

"It's alright I guess, but...I liked the bed more. It's warmer." - It was the first time Hiccup heard shyness in his voice, like he was making a confession; his cheeks were a light shade of pink. Hiccup felt the same bravery he did before; with his heart pounding in his chest, he walked across the room in three fast strides and stopped right in front of Jack, who looked up at him. Slowly, as if not to scare him, Hiccup held his face and leaned down, Jack seemed frozen in place. Their lips touched gently, it was a sweet kind of kiss, one that strived for affection instead of passion. Hiccup decided to forget about the food as the kiss deepened. Jack had grabbed fistfulls of his shirt as he brought the viking down sitting next to him.

This kiss was different from the one in the lake, exploratory instead desperate, more giving than taking; they both had their advantages. Hiccup laid down and pulled Jack so he'd lie beside him on the bed. He felt an overwhelming urge to warm the boy next to him, so he held him close until they both felt breathless and dazed.

The kiss was warming Jack from his mouth to the tip of his toes; it all belonged to Hiccup now. He felt like he was being inexperient and sloppy, but the viking didn't seem to mind; Jack vaguely wondered if Hiccup had kissed people before. Jack hadn't, did it feel like this everytime? Hiccup snuggled closer, their lips never breaking contact, moving as one. Compared to the viking's small frame and soft warm lips, Jack felt like a block of ice. He kissed Hiccup with a stronger pressure before gasping.

"I never want to feel cold again." - Jack whispered in the dark. Hiccup smiled.

"You won't." - He felt him relax, their foreheads touching.

Jack fell asleep next to him quickly, but sleep evaded Hiccup as he thought. He looked back on everything he'd ever heard about love; how his dad said that it was necessary to marry a strong girl, to have strong children so the village could go on. Astrid was the convenient choice, she was brave and violent and ruthless; Hiccup tried to imagine one time that she hadn't been mean to him, but not a single moment came to mind. She confessed to liking him a few times, but she didn't understand him, she didn't care to. As long as Hiccup played the part of the perfect viking, she was happy settling with him.

And then there was Jack, a boy that he met not even two days ago, but that had already changed so much. Changed _him _so much. And nothing about him the sleeping boy beside him was convenient. No, but everything about him was worth it. The moonlight lit the room slightly, Hiccup could see that Jack dreamed peacefully beside him, still holding the viking's shirt in his hand, the other one across his stomach. Yes, he was worth all that Hiccup would go through, worth everything that was coming. And something _was _coming, he could feel it in his bones.

He looked at the moon through the big window in the room, it would be full in a couple of days. Jack had mentioned how the Man on the Moon had saved him, had given him everything. Hiccup wondered what it planned next. It had given Jack a gift, but it had also taken so much away; everyone deserved to know their place in this world, and Jack was left in the dark for 300 years. What kind of person, entity, whatever would bring someone back into this world just to leave him alone? And lost, and scared, and cold. Hiccup was getting angrier and he took a deep breath, willing himself to calm down. He looked at the guardian again, tracing the outline of his lips with his fingertips. He sighed, and as sleep finally caught up with him, he realized that this... whatever it was, was the best thing that had ever happened to him.

The first thing Jack heard when he woke up was Toothless jumping on the roof, he had a suspicion that the dragon did this every morning. Hiccup groaned beside him.

"He always wants to fly first thing in the morning." - His hair was all mussled from sleep, it was so adorable that Jack couldn't help but kiss him softly on the lips. Hiccup smiled into the kiss. Toothless jumped again, breaking the moment.

"No flying today buddy!" - the viking yelled towards the ceiling - "Today is bath day!" - He sat up and looked at Jack, laughing - "I hope you haven't forgotten who is supposed to wash him today."

"Yeah yeah, I know. Mind the scales! haha."

Toothless's thumping was getting more frantic, so they had a fast breakfast and headed straight to the lake. The citizens of Berk didn't wash that often in the winter, the cold was a constant threat, causing frostbite and several diseases due to being underprotected in the cold. But Hiccup had fixed that, as several dragons fired the water until it was warm enough to be pleasant. Toothless made his way to the water warily, he didn't like baths much; it was obvious that he wanted to fly. Hiccup handed Jack a big brush thing and nudged him forward towards the cranky dragon. He turned his back on them and started to undo his wool vest. Jack approached him slowly.

"Come on now, Toothless! Let's play nice for this and later on I'll teach you some cool air tricks." - He started to scrub the dragon's paws, he heard Hiccup behind him undressing to bathe too, and his cheeks turned scarlet. He discreetly looked over his shoulder.

"Ack!" - Toothless made that awful gagging sound and hit Jack's face with his tail, stopping him from seeing Hiccup undressing. The Night Fury's eyes were hard as he shook his head. Hiccup laughed behind him.

"Eyes forward, Jack!"

Jack's ears were on fire as he started scrubbing the upper part of the dragon, he was getting a spot on Toothless's neck when he heard the Night Fury start purring, and before he could think of what was happening, the dragon collapsed, falling on top of Jack's legs.

"HICCUP! HE FELL ASLEEP ON MY LEGS!"

Hiccup was beside him in a second.

"Hm... I might have forgotten to tell you not to scratch his neck; it makes him pass out. He won't be up for a few hours now." - Hiccup rolled the dragon over, freeing Jack's legs.

Jack was suddenly aware that Hiccup was very, very naked next to him.

"Here, take this." - He took off his shirt, looking down, and passed it along to the viking, who put it on without questioning; it was too big for him, it reached his thighs.

"That was actually a good idea, if he's passed out then he can't whine! I'll help you out, I was almost done anyway." - His hair still had some soap on it and Jack couldn't help kicking a water wave on his face.

"Now you are all done!" - Jack's throaty laugh was cut off mid way when Hiccup pushed him in the warm water.

"Now you're all clean too! Please refrain from freezing the lake, it would be rather hard to take Toothless out of here if you did."

"I'll just freeze your legs then, let's see how smart your mouth is when you can't run!"

"You-"

"Hiccup! Who are you talking to?" - One of the wise old ladies asked, her voice clear and loud, she was at the edge of the lake. Hiccup sought this as the perfect opportunity.

"It's Jack Frost! The winter spirit you were telling me about the other day! He's very real and very annoying!" - He shouted back happily, maybe he could start making people believe in Jack sooner than he expected. Jack had gone silent next to him.

"Have you lost it boy? I think the heat got over your head! Get out of there, there's going to be a village fire later, we're sharing stories."

"Great! I'll tell the story of Jack Frost! And everyone will see him!"

The old lady just shook her head and walked away, mumbling about how lost the youth was these days. Hiccup didn't mind though, they would all see. He turned excitedly to Jack, who was still silent.

"Aren't you excited? Everyone will see you!"

"I-I don't know." - Jack seemed unsure, he wouldn't look Hiccup in the eye.

"What's wrong?"

"I just... I don't think I need it anymore. I don't need all the village to believe me."

"What?! Don't you want to be seen?" - He regretted pushing Jack, his blue eyes turned steely.

"I'm already seen! I don't need a whole crowd looking at me to feel seen, I just need one person! And I already have it! So please drop it!" - He walked towards the edge of the lake, his pants wet from falling down.

Hiccup never felt more confused.


	6. Chapter 6

Hiccup never felt more confused.

Something was off. Jack's reaction was the opposite of what it should have been, Hiccup looked at his back as he walked away; he was sure that the ice teen would fly away at any second. It bothered him that Jack was hiding his feelings, how dared he try to use a mask?

"I will not drop it! Jack Frost don't you dare walk away!" - Jack stopped, but his back was still to Hiccup; water dripped from his white locks onto his tense shoulders.

"I don't know where this is coming from, but whatever it is Jack, we'll figure it out together! Just talk to me about it...please. Please turn around." - He pleaded. Jack looked over his shoulder, his face looked conflicted; but their eyes met and he sighed in defeat.

"I- You have to understand Hiccup, I've been on my own for a long, long time. And yes, I want people to see me, but until recently that was a far away dream, unreachable. But now it's a possibility and it's here and it's _real._"- His voice had been barely more than a whisper, but now he shouted, a hint of desperation in his voice -_ "_I'm scared! Ok? What if I'm not what they were expecting, what if I'm not what they _want?!" - _ That's what was bothering him? Jack didn't feel like he was _good enough_? Hiccup scratched the back of his head and couldn't help shrugging his shoulders.

"To be honest Jack, the people of Berk could afford to have a little more fun." - Hiccup said playfully, making Jack roll his eyes, just a ghost of a smile on his lips. He still looked uncertain though, so Hiccup went on. - "I know you want this Jack, I know you! Don't let fear get in the way of what you want! Tonight, people will believe in you." - He walked towards Jack and put his hand on his shoulder, turning him around to face him. He looked into his blue eyes, willing him to understand. - "You don't need to be scared of them, you are their _guardian. _And a damn good one. They'll like you... it's impossible not to." - They held eye contact for two heartbeats until Jack could speak.

His voice hitched - "They-They are gonna see me! Hiccup, they are gonna SEE ME!"- His demeanor changed from worried to relieved, and he laughed loudly. - "You're right! It will be great, it will be _amazing! _And then the whole village could have a massive snow ball fight!"

"Yeah, I wouldn't count on it. But I am glad you're not freaking out anymore... wouldn't want you to get _cold feet._" - He said the last couple words with a mocking laugh but stopped abruptly when Jack's eyes glinted with mischief, his mouth quirked in a predatory way that made Hiccup's stomach fill with butterflies. He took two steps forward as Hiccup took two steps back.

"...cold feet? Oh no, my feet aren't cold anymore; and it's all because of you. Now, what shall we do about it?" - Hiccup was frozen in place as Jack stepped closer, pinning him in place with his eyes, he couldn't escape. - "What did you say earlier? Oh, right. _Don't let fear get in the way of what you want._" - He was so close now that Hiccup could feel his cool breath on his cheek, he lost the ability to think. - "Now now Hiccup, tell me, what is it that _you_ _want?"_

Jack was so close now that he could count the freckles on Hiccup's face. He didn't kiss him though, he wanted to tease him, make him move that last inch forward. The viking was looking at his mouth, he didn't seem to be breathing normally; but he stood where he was. His voice was barely a whisper.

"How do you do that?"

"Do what?" - He whispered by Hiccup's ear, his voice hoarse.

Hiccup grabbed Jack's hand and placed it on his chest, they both could feel his heart beating fast; as if it were singing, or flying, or both.

"That." - Hiccup was serious now, his hand on top of Jack's on his chest. He moved and kissed Jack's mouth, standing on his tip toes. Jack kissed him back hungrily, he poured all of his fear and insecurities from before into the kiss. He could do this, he could face the whole village as long as Hiccup was by his side. He meant what he had said; he didn't need anyone else in the world to see him... all he needed was Hiccup. Needed to continue kissing him.

The viking was suddenly very aware that he was half naked, and that Jack was shirtless. He hesitated, and slowly, he raised his hands to trace the outline of his bare chest. Jack moaned softly against his lips and held Hiccup's face to bring him closer; their tongues enterwining in patters foreign to both of them. Jack moved his hand to rest on Hiccup's hip, his hand felt warm over the big cotton shirt Hiccup was wearing; it was the first time that Jack felt warm to him, the viking groaned. It wasn't enough, he wanted skin to touch skin. Hiccup moved to kiss his neck on a spot below his ear that looked very sensitive; Jack's breath caught and he lolled his head to the side to give him better acess, sighing. Upon hearing him sigh, Hiccup knew he was lost.

Jack was found. He had finally realized where he belonged; how silly of him, flying all over the world looking for a place to call home. Home wasn't a place, it was a feeling. And a feeling he only felt when he was with Hiccup. The viking was home for him now, and it would be from now on, as long as he existed. The spot Hiccup was kissing was sending shivers down his spine, he didn't know what day it was anymore or what he was supposed to be doing, his thoughts had jumbled together. He had heard once, that what makes your heart race is always worth doing. He didn't know what he was doing, but he knew it was worth it; his heart was telling him all that he needed to know.

Jack was in love.

A giant wave of water fell upon them, and they sprang apart. Toothless had used his tail to demand their attention; apparently he woke up sooner than they were expecting. Hiccup groaned.

"Let's just finish washing him and head to the village, the fire will start soon."

"Sure." - Hiccup moved to get the brush, but Jack tugged his hand, turning him back and landing a quick chaste kiss on his lips, right in front of Toothless. They smiled at each other for a second before turning their attention back to the dragon.

By the time they arrived at the communal fire, most of the village was already there; small children were running around, throwing snow at each other happily. The elders gathered around the fire to keep warm. Food was being prepared by the wise old ladies as they made small talk. They all shot glances at Toothless as they approached, friendly or not, a night fury was still something to be awed by. Hiccup soothed the dragon by scratching his ears; Jack was a little behind them, looking curiously at the kids playing, the elders cooking and at everyone talking. Hiccup cleared his throat.

"I have an announcement to make." - He looked at Jack behind him once, to make sure he was ok; he seemed fine except for the fact that he was holding his staff in a firmer grip than usual, his knuckles turning white.

"Just spit it out Hiccup, story time will begin soon!" - Someone said to his left. He took a deep breath.

"There's a winter spirit in Berk. His name is Jack Frost, people can't see him because no one believes in him, but the stories are true and he is very real." - He said bluntly, the simple way was the best way with these people.

Silence. The little kids stopped playing, all eyes were on Hiccup, he scratched the back of his head and went on.

"He's here... Hm, if you all believe in him, you will see him too." - The silence stretched awkwardly. The elders looked at Hiccup like he had lost his mind, but some of the kids squinted their eyes, as if to see better.

"LOOK!" - One of the little kids yelled, the one who was closest to Jack. His big eyes met Jack's blue ones and the little kid smiled widely - "I can see him! Vikka! Look at him!" - He took a little girl's hand to bring her closer, she seemed to be his twin sister, they had similar red hair.

"He's pretty..." - The little girl said, shyness and admiration evident in her posture and voice.

"Hiccup! What are you doing to the kids? Have you completely lost it?" - One of the elders shouted angrily. Another woman stood up.

"Ever since his father left he's been acting weird! I see him talking to himself all the time, and now this! We always knew he was odd, but now it's affecting my children!" - She got a hold of both the little boy and girl, who were still looking at Jack; the girl waved at him shyly. Jack hesitated before waving back, a small smile on his lips. At least the kids believed in him. He looked back at Hiccup, who looked hurt and shocked.

"Can you all just listen to me? Once in your life, just look at what's right in front of you!"

"I'll tell you what I see in front of me, boy! I see someone who was too coward to go along with Astrid on a journey that will bring glory to all the vikings! I see someone who never belonged in this village! I see a _freak!" - _The woman shouted, people cheered her on, throwing insults at him; the kids were quiet and observing. Toothless growled at the woman, who took a step back in fear. Hiccup held his saddle to hold him in place, he looked up at the sky as if cursing the gods. For the love of Thor! Couldn't things work out in his favor just once?

Jack saw red, they could say whatever they wanted about him; but the nerve to say something about Hiccup! He moved his staff to make snow fall lightly.

"Can't you see that?! That's me! I'm doing this!" - He jumped right in front of the woman, she saw right through him though; her angry face was still glued on Hiccup. The kids on her side reached for Jack's staff curiously.

"Wow." - The twins said in unison.

Hiccup looked at Jack, the desperation in his voice was clear so he sighed and tried again; he owed it to Jack to try to talk some sense into the people of Berk.

"This isn't about me, ok? It's not about my father, or Astrid or whoever. All I am asking is that you, for a small moment, to believe in him. Even if what you said about me is true, you can't deny that there's a chance I actually now what I'm talking about!"

It was silent again, every eye was on Hiccup, except the two kids, who still only had eyes for Jack, especially when he shook his staff again to make the snow stop falling. The woman turned his back to him, her voice had a hint of sympathy, as if she were talking to an ill person.

"Go home, Hiccup."

The skinny viking looked at everyone at the gathering, no one could meet his eyes. Jack put his hand on his shoulder in a gesture of comfort.

"It's ok Hiccup, let's go home. We'll figure this all out and then come back and try again." - How could he still be hopeful? All that Hiccup wanted to do was leave Berk and never come back. He looked at Jack's face, he wasn't angry, his eyes were kind and understanding. Hiccup gave everyone one last hard look, and then, without another word, he turned around and left. Toothless and Jack right behind him.

As soon as they arrived home, and Toothless went up to sleep on the roof, Hiccup apologized. He mumbled it over and over, his eyes were wet with tears of frustation; Jack hugged him close, speaking words of comfort. They both fell asleep just like that, holding each other. Jack's hope was keeping Hiccup warm; he wished he could warm him back.

Hiccup got up with a start in the middle of the night, he heard an anxious knock on the door; he woke Jack up and they both listened close. The person kept knocking so Hiccup decided to open the door. He expected it to be some drunk old man who had come to the wrong house. It had happened before, especially on nights of story telling; what he did not expect was what seemed like all the children of Berk, from ages 5 to 11 to be standing outside. About 20 children looked at him curiously and he saw that right in front of the group were the twins from earlier, Soeren and Vikka, they were about 7 years old. The little boy took a deep breath and spoke first.

"We are here to see Jack Frost."

**AN: Hope you guys like this chapter! I am really nervous about posting it so please review! Any comments are appreciated xx :)**


	7. Chapter 7

"We are here to see Jack Frost." - At the mention of his name, Jack walked up behind Hiccup, looking over his head at the kids. The twins gasped and pointed.

"He's right there! Look!" - The little boy excitedly told the other kids.

"I can't see anything! What does he look like?" - One of the older children asked. Vikka took her hand and brought her closer to the door.

"He's right behind Hiccup! You have to focus, and believe! He is tall and has white hair."

"White hair? Is he old?"

Vikka blushed - "No, he's not old! Just close your eyes and believe... everyone do this!" - The little girl's voice was commanding; she might be young, but she was a natural leader among the other children. Jack couldn't help but admire her strong personality.

All the children closed their eyes, except the twins. Hiccup was speechless, how had they managed to convince all the other kids to come? And in Thor's name, how had they all managed to sneak out so late? Toothless had heard the commotion, he landed from the ceiling beside Hiccup to look at the scene, the twins seemed a little bit scared of the dragon but he was tactful enough to make himself look harmless. The little boy smiled then, and stepped closer to the Night Fury. He hesitantly scratched Toothless's ears, who purred a soft sound in response. The children heard the dragon, the sound breaking them off their daze.

One by one, they all opened their eyes and gasped when they saw Jack standing there, he had moved in front of Hiccup expectantly. They all had matching expressions of surprise, curiosity and awe. Jack stepped forward anxiously, his voice seemed to be uneven.

"hm, Hi! C-Can you all see me?" - All the kids nodded slowly. Jack's grin was so big that it made his whole face glow with happiness, and the children smiled back. Jack blew snowflakes that fell on each of the kids noses; Soeren made a snowball and threw it on his sister face, who laughed in response and chased him around. All the kids broke out in a huge snowball fight, Jack right in the middle.

Hiccup and Toothless watched the scene together quietly. It seemed like the viking's heart had doubled in size, it was so full of affection when he saw how much fun Jack was having; it seemed that he and the twins had made a team against all the other kids in the snowball fight. Hiccup had practically seen all those kids grow up, but he never saw them so happy. He thought that Jack must have been like a breath of fresh air to them, someone who perfectly understood the power of small gestures, like throwing a snow ball or making snow patterns on snow just by lying down and moving your arms and legs in silly ways.

Toothless nudged his shoulder gently, and turned his head towards the closest house, where someone seemed to have lit their fireplace. Hiccup panicked at the thought of the village finding him alone with all the kids in the middle of the night. He whispered to the small but loud crowd in front of him.

"People are going to notice soon! You guys have to leave...Jack! They need to go back!" - He felt bad for breaking the fun, but they needed to be careful. The village and Hiccup weren't exaclty on good terms; Jack nodded, he gathered the kids around in a big circle around him.

"Your parents will notice soon, you need to go back now."

"Can we come back tomorrow morning?" - A little boy said, grabbing a fistull of Jack's wool jacket hopefully.

"Of course! Tomorrow I will teach you all how to make the best snowman in the world, would you like that?" - The kids nodded eargerly, stepping closer to hug Jack goodbye. The teen seemed overwhelmed to be hugged by so many people at the same time, but he smiled at them all and waved them goodbye. After they were gone, Jack backflipped into the air twice, laughing loudly. Toothless seemed excited too, and he licked his face in a gesture of friendship, Jack petted his head and turned his blue eyes to the viking.

"Hiccup! Did you see that? The kids like me!" - Before he could respond Jack ran to him, grabbed him by the waist, lifting him from the ground and turning them around and around until Hiccup felt dizzy. He couldn't help laughing, he had never seen this side of Jack before, he liked it. Jack put him down again - "And it's all because of you! You're the reason they believe in me!"

"Nah, I think you did all that yourself, Frost." - He said jokingly, Jack's expression turned sincere and intense.

"I didn't. Without you, none of this would be happening... I wouldn't be this _happy._" - Jack seemed like he wanted to say something else, but before he could muster the courage to do it, Toothless yawned loudly, and they both remembered that it was the middle of the night. Hiccup sighed.

"Let's go to sleep, I have a feeling tomorrow will be a big day for you. Those kids will wear you out." - He took Jack's hand, dragging him back inside the warm house. Jack snorted.

"Are you kidding me? I could spend whole days playing in the snow, those kids will have more fun tomorrow than they had in their entire lives!"

Hiccup smiled - "I don't doubt that for a second."

They woke up by Toothless insistent jumping on the roof, it was like clockwork, every day he would wake them up at the same time; wanting to fly first thing in the morning. Jack groaned and Hiccup sighed, his head was resting comfortably on Jack's shoulder, he didn't want to get up. Jack, however, perked up suddenly.

"The kids will be here soon!" - He got out of bed to put on his wool jacket, Hiccup yawned.

"Hm, yeah. I'll have to take Toothless flying though, so I won't be there at first." - Jack stopped.

"You're leaving?" - His eyes looked huge and begging, Hiccup got up to stand in front of him.

"Just for a couple hours, I'll be back." - Jack grabbed Hiccup's face and kissed him passionately, walking forward so the viking's back would be against a wall. Hiccup had a hard time thinking with Jack so close, their tongues dancing in a rhythm that was driving him crazy and making his head spin. He broke the kiss with a sigh.

"Okay, I'll be back _soon_." - Jack smirked and kissed the spot below his ear that sent shivers down Hiccup's body. He murmured against his ear, painfully close.

"Not good enough, Hic." - It was the first time he used the nickname, it did weird things to Hiccup's heart, and stomach...and everywhere else.

"_I'll be back in a heartbeat."_ - He half whispered, half groaned. Jack let him go suddenly and laughed.

"Much better." - Hiccup felt weak in the knee, it took him a minute to put himself together. Damn Jack for making him behave this way, payback would be so sweet. That would have to wait until later though, as Toothless jumped faster with impatience, the sound echoing through the house.

The children arrived just as Hiccup was taking off with Toothless, they looked at the dragon in awe as they disappeared in the clear sky. However, they soon forgot about him and payed attention to Jack. He taught them to build snowmen and how to make sure the snow was good enough to throw, all the while cracking jokes and being silly just to hear them laugh. The twins were there as well, their first believers beside Hiccup. Jack noticed that the little boy had paid more attention to the Night Fury than the others, maybe he would like to ride him sometime, Jack made a mental note to ask Hiccup about it later; and the little girl seemed to hang onto his every word, it was kind of funny. It reminded him of his sister.

Jack stepped out to watch the kids for a little while, giving hints on their snowball fight techniques and cheering them on. The little red-haired girl, Vikka, stood next to him as she did her braid that had come loose earlier. Jack didn't see time go by, and sooner than he expected, Hiccup was back. The kids welcomed him warmly, telling him to join in the fun. He smiled and nodded as he took the saddle off Toothless. He waved at Jack in the distance, who smiled and waved back. The little girl noticed the direction of his gaze.

"My mom is wrong, you know, Hiccup is not a coward. He is brave enough to make friends with a dragon..." - The little girl said as she parted her hair in three. Jack nodded in agreement. Vikka went on. - "Astrid is not so bad though, she taught me how to braid my hair." - The girl smiled at the memory as the twisted her hair. Jack had heard people talk about Astrid, but he had no idea who she was, maybe the girl knew. Curiosity got the best of him.

"Everyone seemes to talk about that girl a lot, is she some sort of leader in the village?" - Jack was drawing patters on the snow with his staff, looking at Hiccup in the distance. The viking was showing the kids how to pet Toothless without making him pass out, a valuable lesson, Jack smiled at the memory of them giving the dragon - and each other - a bath.

The little girl finished doing her braid absent-mindedly - "Well, she will be when she marries Hiccup."

Jack froze. _What _did she say? The memory from the lake shattered before his eyes, his smile disappearing completely. He felt like he might be sick, the girl took his silence as a sign to keep talking.

"I mean, I think they will marry... I saw her kiss him a couple of times, it was so gross!" - Every word she said was another punch in Jack's gut, he needed to get away. He stumbled back, almost falling backwards. The girl looked at him with worry in her big brown eyes.

"Jack? Are you alright? You don't look well... HIccup! I think he's sick! Hiccup!" - Hiccup was too far away to hear her, he was distracted by all the kids around Toothless. The girl looked back to Jack again, but he disappeared. There was nothing there, no one in sight.

Jack was gone.

Toothless seemed to be getting along great with the kids, Hiccup thought that Jack would be proud and happy to see them excitedly petting the dragon. He looked at where he was standing with Vikka, but he only saw the little girl there, looking confused. Where was Jack? He looked around, but he was nowhere in sight. The girl walked up to him and yelled, startling the children with her powerful voice, and even Toothless focused his yellow eyes on her.

"Jack is gone! Something is wrong with him, he looked sick! Hiccup, you need to find him!"

His heart stopped and his breath caught. How was it possible? He seemed fine just a moment ago, he had waved back at Hiccup with that silly smile of him; it made him remember their kiss this morning and he ached to touch him again, the kids had been the only thing standing in the way of him walking right over to Jack and pressing his lips against his cold ones until they were warm and soft and responding.

He shook his head to think clearly - "Toothless, make sure the kids get back home alright. I'll look for Jack." - The Night Fury nodded, using his tail so push the kids forward gently. Hiccup ran home, it was the first place he thought of looking, however, it was empty, no sign of Jack anywhere; he started to panic slightly, he had a horrible feeling that something was wrong. He walked all over Berk, he wasn't at his workshop or at the communal baths, or at the dragon training center. And then it hit Hiccup like a cannonball, the _lake! _He took off running, he paid no mind to his throbbing leg.

The lake looked beautiful. The sun was high in the sky so it cast a bright light on the ice that shone on Jack's face with a million different colors. He hardly noticed though, his thoughts were on the girl's words; they echoed in his head as if waiting to choke him, to dry him of any happiness... _I saw her kiss him a couple of times... when she marries Hiccup... kiss him... marries him..._

"Jack!" - He recognized that voice anywhere, he saw Hiccup limping towards him. He looked tired, his face was red and he was sweating a lot, but he seemed relieved to see him.

"Jack! Are you alright? Why did you leave so suddenly?" - They were a foot apart now, Jack looked down. His voice barely a whisper, he ignored the question.

"This is where you first saw me. Where he had our first kiss... well, where _I had my first kiss._" - He still couldn't look at Hiccup, the viking took a step forward, trying to catch his eye.

"Jack..."

"I need to go." - Jack interrupted him.

"W-What? Why?"

"There are other places that need winter, I can't be in one place all the time."

"It snows here 9 months of the year, Jack!" - He tried to touch Jack's shoulder, but he dodged the touch and shrugged his shoulders.

"And that is why I will be back...soon."

Hiccup felt like he was falling into darkness. He felt cold, and alone and angry.

"How soon!?"

He smiled sadly when he replied in that same monotone voice. The smile didn't reach his eyes.

"In a heartbeat."

He was there for a moment, and then he was gone. Hiccup felt like he was choking on poison, what was the matter with him? His moods swings were so unpredictable, Jack simply didn't know how to talk to people, it made Hiccup want to shake some sense into him. If they could just talk about whatever was bothering him... He guessed he would have to wait, at least for "a heartbeat"; he wondered how much time that was, it usually felt like a second, but now, as he looked up at the sky trying to spot him, it felt like an eternity.

**AN: please review! Any questions are welcome on my tumblr, you can see the link in my profile page :) enjoy!**


	8. Chapter 8

Hiccup woke up before Toothless did. It had happened frequently in the past couple weeks, he would wake before dawn every morning now; then he would make a small mark on the wall, counting the days since Jack left. Today would be the fifteenth mark, not that it mattered to Hiccup anymore, he had been pretty much hopeless since that awful night. He had spent the whole night by the lake, waiting for Jack to change his mind and come back; it was so cold he thought he'd freeze to death. How ironic that would be, the perfect way to go.

He got up and walked over to the window to see the sun rise, it reminded him of Jack. Well, pretty much everything did these days, everytime he heard someone laugh or smile or have fun he'd think of Jack; even touching ice reminded him of Jack, it was close, but not quite the same. The rising sun lit up the room, and Toothless began to thump on the roof, demanding attention. The Night Fury had found Hiccup passed out in the snow, almost 15 days ago, and had brought him home. He had tried to warm Hiccup on the way back, but it didn't work. He felt cold for two weeks now, and nothing in this world could warm him back up. Jack had showed him a new sort of warmth that no one had before, and that no one ever would again.

He got dressed and walked out the door, Toothless was waiting for him outside, but he wasn't alone. The twins were beside the dragon, as they had been every day since Jack left. It had been horrible, the kids would ask for him constantly, always wanting to know where was and if he would be back... and why did Jack leave in the first place? It broke Hiccup's heart to see them like that, he tried to comfort them as much as he could, saying that everything was alright and that Jack would be back soon. Eventually the kids stopped asking, except the twins. They were always there, always waiting patiently. The boy liked to play with Toothless too, but the girl was fixated on the idea that she had driven Jack away. And today wasn't different.

"Hiccup, this is all my fault!" - She looked like she was about to cry, Hiccup was surprised for Vikka rarely cried - "He was fine and then I started talking and he looked like he wanted to throw up." - She shook her head and held her face; her wild red hair escaping her braid. Hiccup sighed and knelt in front of her, taking the hair out of her eyes.

"It is not your fault, Vikka. I don't understand what made Jack so upset, but he told me that he would be back. He is a guardian, he wouldn't abandon you kids, especially now that you all see him, ok?" - The little girl nodded, she grabbed fistfulls of her hair and started braiding it again. She smiled fondly at Hiccup, they were at the same eye level. Hiccup glanced over her shoulder to see that Soeren and Toothless were playing in the snow together. The girl spoke again.

"Remember when Astrid taught me how to braid my hair?" - Hiccup nodded, he remembered that day. Astrid had always been fond of the girl, she had always treated Vikka with a sort of sweet gentleness, like an older sister would. And looking back at that day, he had realized that Astrid was not a bad person, just misguided. She wasn't a killing machine, but a girl with ambition, much like Vikka; Hiccup hoped that that ambition wouldn't poison Vikka like it had done with Astrid. She sighed, her eyes sad.

"I miss her, and I miss Jack too. I wanted them to meet so we could all play together." - Hiccup smiled weakly to please the girl but he shivered on the inside, the idea of Jack and Astrid meeting gave Hiccup the chills.

"Don't be silly, Jack and Astrid have never seen each other. I doubt he even knows who she is." - Hiccup said, and added to himself silently, _Thank Thor for that._

"Yeah he does, I told him about her." - Hiccup stilled in front of the girl, he grabbed her shoulders and looked into her big, brown eyes. He forced himself to sound calm.

"Really? What did you say?"

"Oh, just how she taught me how to work my hair, and that you two are getting married... and that I think kisses are gross." - She shrugged her shoulders like it wasn't a big deal, but Hiccup knew better. He stood up but he was still looking at her, he was coming to the horrible conclusion that Jack had, after all, left for a reason.

"What? We're not getting married! Did you tell him that me and Astrid kissed?"

"Yeah... gross. And then he left." - She wasn't making the connection, her childhood innocence blinded her. Hiccup was glad that she was a clueless child but he also felt a pang of irritation at the girl for being so blunt.

And Jack, the idiot, had got the wrong idea. It was all so clear to Hiccup right now, his words at the lake, his sudden depart. He thought that Hiccup liked someone else, was marrying someone else. Suddenly, he knew what he had to do; he knew that when Jack returned, he was going to need proof that Hiccup liked him. That Hiccup was _in love _with him, the truth of that statement hit Hiccup hard, and he cursed himself for not saying it sooner. But he would fix this.

"Toothless! Would you please play with the twins for today? I have some work to do." - The twins looked confused, but the Night Fury agreed, licking his face to show affection. He then licked the twins faces, who laughed happily. Nodding, Hiccup ran back home to get his sketch book. Upon arriving at his workshop, he began drawning.

Jack paid no attention to the rising sun. He needed to go back to Berk, he couldn't stand to stay away anymore. The first few days were awful, he had to hold himself back not to fly straight back to Hiccup, straight back home. Instead he did was he was supposed to, at least once in his life, and brought winter to all the places where it was needed. He didn't sleep much, so the work was over quickly. But he still couldn't get back, he knew that if what Vikka had said was true, then his heart would break and that the world would lose its light, everything would be dark and cold again. He was so scared that she spoke the truth, but he realized that not knowing was even worse.

He had just flown by Dragon Island, when he saw some sort of commotion in a nearby small village. It sounded like people celebrating, he flew closer and saw the ships. The same ships that had departed that first day he arrived at Berk. Viking ships. Curiosity got the best of him as he landed on a tree nearby, observing the young vikings celebrating by a morning fire. There were some older people, but most of them seemed to be around Hiccup's age. He listened close.

"Good job, Astrid! Now we get to come back earlier, and everyone will have a better winter!" - A big man said said happily to a blond girl, Astrid. Jack jumped from the tree to walk among them; his blue eyes on the conversation in front of him.

"Thank you! How long do you figure until we arrive at Berk?"

"About two days if we leave now." - The man was looking at the girl with pride in his green eyes; Jack noticed that the man's eyes looked familiar, but he couldn't quite place them. The girl looked worried, Jack looked at her from head to toe; damn her, she was taller than Hiccup and very pretty. Jack felt a pang of jealousy and had to fight the urge to throw snow on her face. The girl sighed, and seemed to decide to confide in the man.

"I'm a bit worried... about what Hiccup will think of this." - At the mention of his name Jack moved closer, not wanting to miss a word. The man sighed too and diverged his eyes from the girl, looking right through Jack. With a gasp he realized where he had seen those eyes before, they were the same green color as Hiccup's. Was this his dad? They looked nothing alike, except the eyes. Jack felt like he understood Hiccup a little better now, the man looked like the complete opposite of his son. The man finally spoke, he had a commanding voice, the voice of a leader.

"I will admit that I don't understand why Hiccup acts the way he does most of the time. But even he has to be impressed by what we've accomplished here... under your command. Astrid, one day I feel like you and Hiccup will be great leaders for the vikings."

The girl blushed a little with embarassment at being so open to the man - "But... he said I made him sick. What if he doesn't _want this?_" - She gestured at the destroyed village, but also gestured at herself. Jack couldn't help noticing that she wasn't sure about Hiccup's feelings for her, and in that moment he sympathized a little with her because neither was he. But just a little.

The man was momentarily taken aback at that - "Don't be silly, Hiccup has always been crazy about you, Astrid, and haven't you even... hum, kissed a couple times?" - He seemed uncomfortable with the conversation, but Jack was grateful that he was making her talk about it. He wanted to hear her side.

"_I _kissed _him. _He never kissed me first, or even kissed me back. I really like him, but I don't know what to think anymore. He's been so different lately." - She looked frustated and irritated. Jack figured the girl had a bad temper.

"Well, the only thing I can say is that Hiccup has a way of always getting what he wants, sooner or later you two will figure things out. I am sure! Now, let's prepare to depart." - His tone was kind but firm, the conversation was over. The girl brushed her bangs out of her forehead in annoyance, the same way Vikka did, and walked out with Hiccup's dad towards the ships.

Jack turned the conversation over in his head, she always kissed him first? Hiccup had kissed _him_ first, he smiled at the memory of how he had grabbed Jack's face and had placed his lips over his, hard and daring. Yes, he always got what he wanted, didn't he? Jack looked around the destroyed village, he had to admit that the vision made him sick as well. Was that much violence really needed? Did Hiccup know about this? Why didn't he tried to stop them? Jack didn't want to waste any more time, he jumped in the air and flew back to Berk, he and Hiccup needed to talk.

Jack was much faster than the ships, he was there in a matter of hours. The sun was setting in the sky, casting an orange light on the village. He flew straight to Hiccup's house and, looking through the window, saw that he had fallen asleep by the kitchen table. His head over some papers and tools. Jack's heart raced at the sight of him, he wanted to talk to him so badly, to touch him, to hold him. He knocked on the door loudly a couple times, Hiccup must have been exhausted not to wake up right away, but his head rose slowly. He looked at the window and blinked a few times, his green eyes widened when he saw Jack. He ran to open the door and Jack didn't hesitate to jump on him, making them both fall over.

"Ow!" - Hiccup complained loudly, and twisted them around fast so he was sitting on Jack's stomach. He had a firm grip on Jack's hands and he placed them over his head. His eyes above him flashed with a mix of anger and relief at seeing Jack. He knew that he was stronger than Hiccup and could break his hold if he really wanted to. The thing was, he didn't want to. The silence stretched, Jack decided to break it.

"I missed you."

Hiccup didn't beat around the bush. - "I know why you left."

"Y-You do?"

Hiccup's face was so close to Jack now that all he could see were his eyes, so alike from the man's he had seen earlier, but also very different. Hiccup's eyes were more alive, more demanding, brighter somehow.

"How stupid can you really be Jack? Astrid!? Did you honestly think I have feelings for her? With everything _we_ have?"

"I-I -" He was interrupted again, Hiccup it seemed, was on a roll.

"You listened to a six-year old child, and instead of talking to me about it, you just _left!?_ Have you any idea what these past weeks have been like without you? I could actually kill you right now, Jack Frost!"

"It's been no picnic for me either, Hiccup! I didn't know! Ok? I had no idea that you two were together, and then I saw her! She is perfect! How could I ever compete with that? I couldn't stand knowing that you didn't like me! So I left, yeah, because I was terrified! But don't dare make it sound like it was easy for me!" - Hiccup's eyes widened, he was almost shouting now.

"Don't like you? Jack, I love you! And I never felt that way about Astrid! She doesn't make me laugh, she doesn't make me think, she doesn't make my heart race! You do! I will always _choose you_, you idiot!"

_I love you! I love you! I love you!_

"Hiccup, I love you too." - All the anger left the viking's face, and he bent down to kiss Jack. Every pull of lips were telling him all that he needed to know, that he missed him, loved him. Jack kissed him back fiercely, he had missed this so much. Hiccup lit a fire inside Jack that only he could put it out; his hands were still holding Jack's, but then he relaxed into the kiss and entwirned his fingers with the guardian's. Jack noticed that he was wearing a simple silver ring on his finger. He broke the kiss and eyed the ring curiously; Hiccup gave a small laugh.

"I made one for you too. That way everyone will know that we belong to each other." - Jack's heart was beating really fast at the importance of the gesture, he hoped to distract from his blushing face with a teasing smirk.

"Is that what you were working on? I saw you passed out, it must be really important to you." - He teased, Hiccup reached into his pocket and put a ring that was exactly like his own on Jack's finger. The design was simple and yet beautiful.

"Really important? Understatement of the year." - He bent down to kiss Jack again.

**AN: Please review! Also, next chapter will be rated M, so read at your own risk! haha any questions about this can be answered on my tumblr page (you can find it in my profile). Hope you liked this chapter! xx**


	9. Chapter 9

**AN: This chapter is rated M! :)**

He bent down to kiss Jack again, but it wasn't enough. This time, he wanted more... _needed _more. His lips became wild and demanding against the guardian's; Jack hesitated for a moment, but quickly responded with matching enthusiasm. Hiccup didn't care that the door was open, the cool air getting inside or that they were still on the floor. All he cared about was the way Jack felt beneath him. He ran his fingers through Jack's soft hair, bringing him closer as he rocked his hips against the guardian's, Jack's breath caught in his throat as he moaned into Hiccup's mouth, the kiss now feeling like fire. They were a mess of limbs, quick breaths and low, throaty sounds.

Jack snaked his arm around the viking's waist and he raised his back from the ground, sitting up, never breaking the kiss. Hiccup wrapped his legs around hips hips and his arms around Jack's neck; the room felt hot. Jack stood them both up in an unsteady way, Hiccup wasn't really heavy, but his knees felt weak and his mind was in a frenzy. He kicked the door closed and tumbled towards the bed, falling on it sideways. Jack had a funny feeling in his stomach and he felt heat rushing to his cheeks as Hiccup moved to be on top of again.

The room felt hot, Hiccup ached to remove his vest, but he didn't want to scare Jack away, he knew that they had been led this far by pure instinct, and not experience. He didn't want to push him when even Hiccup himself was somewhat clueless of what would happen if they took the next step. He kissed Jack's neck on a spot below his earlobe that seemed to drive him crazy; his hands trembled as he slid them under Jack's shirt, bringing it up, feeling his cold, hard stomach and chest. The only sound in the room seemed to be of their accelerated breathing and racing hearts.

Hiccup was so warm, it was making Jack feel feverish. He was burning holes in his skin with his lips, memorizing every inch of him with his fingertips. He felt that same need as before, the need to be as close as possible; he moved his hands to take off Hiccup's vest and shirt. The viking paused to help him and then he removed Jack's shirt over his head and threw them both over his shoulder, never taking his green eyes off his blue ones. They stopped just like this, mussled hair, blushed cheeks and breathless pants.

"Hiccup, I-I- I don't know how-"

"Do you trust me?"

Jack nodded, bringing his gaze down to look at Hiccup's chest; he had many freckles spread out, from his shoulders to his skinny waist and Jack wanted to kiss every single one of them. The viking put his hand under his chin and brought his face up to look him in the eye again.

"I am very much in love with you, you know that don't you?" - Jack nodded again, smirking.

"Feeling is quite mutual, Hic." - Hiccup laughed.

"I really missed that stupid smirk." - Before Jack could reply, Hiccup kissed him again, slower this time. His hands were on either side of Jack's face, gently coaxing him to respond, which he did by grabbing the viking's hips and moving slightly against his own to cause friction. Jack felt blood rush south in a way that had never happened before. He had a faint memory of something like it in his human years but it had never been this intense. He could feel that the same thing was happening to Hiccup, the viking was on him like a hot blanket; he was still holding Jack's face but when the guardian bit his lip his breath hitched and his hands went lower again.

The air around them seemed thick and frenzied, Hiccup was having a hard time focusing with Jack so close; he wanted everything to be perfect but it was hard to keep calm when the guardian was rubbing himself against him and kissing him so boldly. His hands reached the band of Jack's pants and he awkwardly undid the knot at the front, he cursed his fingers for being clumsy and sloppy. Jack raised his hips to help him, the sun had set in the sky a while back and the only light in the room was from the faint moonlight; it would be full in a couple of days.

Hiccup felt self counscious about his fake leg; the thick scar tissue just below his knee wasn't pretty and he feared Jack would be disgusted by it. Astrid never wanted to see it, she said it was foolish to show your weaknesses. He flinched when Jack's hand lowered to take off his trousers, the guardian raised an eyebrow as if waiting for an explanation.

"My-my leg..."

Jack didn't hesitate, he removed Hiccup's pants until the scar was visible. It was well attached to the metal leg in a way that couldn't be removed. The skin was thick around the edge of the injury and there were some burn marks on his thigh. Hiccup held his breath, waiting for Jack's reaction. The ice teen eyed the leg for a second, then he kissed his fingertips and reached down to outline the scar gently. Hiccup suspected that he would have kissed the scar itself, if he could reach it. Jack's eyes looked huge and his lips inviting so Hiccup didn't waste any more time. He bent down kiss him again and positioned himself between his legs, Jack held onto his freckled shoulders as if he would otherwise drown.

Hiccup's fingers wrapped around Jack's shaft and he hissed in pleasure at the hot touch. His eyes lolled back when the viking started pumping it, building up a pace. Hiccup held onto Jack's hip with his other hand and he placed himself at his entrance, pushing forward slowly; he almost lost it when Jack started writhing and moaning his name softly, his cold lips finding his until they weren't cold anymore.

It hurt, but it was also amazing at the same time. They were both slick with sweat, Jack couldn't remember the last he had felt hot enough to sweat. Another painful pang mixed with pleasure hit him at his core when Hiccup buried himself in him to the hilt. His mouth was against Hiccup's, the viking was kissing the pain away as he built a steady rhythm in and out. Jack had never felt anything like it in his whole existence; his hands left the viking's shoulder to caress his lower back, giving Hiccup support and exploring his skin with his fingers at the same time, the viking was touching every inch of his body with his own and his hands were on either side of Jack. Everytime that he pushed in, his stomach rubbed against Jack's member in a delicious way that was lighting a fire throughout his whole body.

Hiccup buried his head on Jack's shoulder as his thrusts became faster and deeper, the feeling was almost unbearable now. Being so close to Jack was all that Hiccup wanted, nothing in the world would ever feel as good as this moment. He felt the pressure building, he was close now; he lifted his head to look at Jack's face, the guardian's mouth was halfway open and his blue eyes were unfocused. Hiccup rubbed his nose gently against his to bring his attention back, Jack smiled. The smile did it for Hiccup, he let go inside Jack, releasing all that he had to give. After a few strokes of his member, Jack soon followed.

Hiccup collapsed on top of Jack, breathless. The guardian ran his fingers through the viking's brown hair and sighed happily. Hiccup doesn't know how long they stayed together like this, just breathing the same air. They heard when Toothless landed on the roof, the kids must have gone home by now; that reminded Hiccup.

"The kids missed you."

Jack's hand stopped on Hiccup's hair. - "What did you tell them?"

"That you'd be back. Vikka thinks she's the one who drove you away." - His words were careful.

"Silly girl. I will talk to her tomorrow, and the others?"

"They just... asked about. You mean a lot to them." - Jack was quiet at that, but a small smile was on his swollen lips. - "I'll make up to the kids, Hic."

There was another question on his mind - "What was it like?"

"Hm? What was what like?"

Hiccup started drawing lazy patterns on Jack's chest with his finger to hide his embarassment - "Traveling around, seeing the world. Being free."

"You are free!" - Hiccup rolled his eyes, Jack went on thoughtfully - "It's funny, people speak different languages, dress different, think different; but every single child has the same look in their eyes when they see the first snowfall. That same sincere smile... everyone smiles in the same language. It's funny."

They didn't speak much after that.

.

Toothless woke up when the sun hit his eyes. He stretched on the roof and prepared to jump on it to wake up Hiccup. He was worried about his best friend lately, he seemed sad and unenthusiastic. Toothless had tried to cheer him up, but he knew that he missed Jack; he tried not to feel jealous of how much time they spent together before he left. And now that he had hurt Hiccup, it would take a long, long time before the dragon could forgive him. He jumped on the roof again, a little more forcefully than was needed.

He looked around before climbing down, but stopped when he saw something in the distance. In the horizont, he could see a fleet of ships. They were back. The vikings were back. He panicked, he got down too fast and almost fell on his face, he needed to warn Hiccup! He needed to warn him _now._

.

Jack groaned - "Does Toothless has to jump on the roof so early in the morning?!"

"Hey, weren't you the one that woke up with the sunrise? What happened to that?"

Hiccup sat up on the bed, stretching his arms above his head with a yawn. Jack smiled, his eyes were puffy from sleep and his hair was all over the place: he looked adorable.

"I don't need the sun anymore, I have you." - He said simply, shrugging his shoulders. Hiccup smiled and moved to kiss him, but before their lips could touch, the Night Fury broke down the door with his head. They both jumped, surprise evident in their wide eyes.

"Toothless! What are you doing?"

The dragon seemed agitated but he stopped with a jerk when he saw Jack. His big yellow eyes stared at Jack, there was anger in those eyes. The guardian felt uneasy.

"Hm, hey buddy! Wanna do some cool air tricks today?"

Toothless growled at him, snapping him jaw in a threatingly manner. Hiccup stood up to calm down the dragon.

"Stop it, Toothless! Tell me what's wrong!"

His eyes lingered on Jack a moment more before turning to Hiccup, he looked just a bit scared as he pointed his head outside. They got dressed and followed the dragon outside, there was some commotion in the village; it looked like people were celebrating something. And then he felt Jack stiff beside him, he looked up at him but his blue eyes were focused on the docks. He followed his gaze to see what it was all about.

Astrid was back.

He grabbed Jack's hand and interwined his fingers with his; they could feel each other's rings. Jack looked like he wanted to be sick, Hiccup squeezed his hand gently, trying not to show how nervous he really was. If the village found out about them, no, _when_ the village found out about them he knew that it would be ugly and messy. They would never understand, never accept; suddenly Hiccup did something he never did before. He feared the future... he feared for Jack. He squeezed the viking's hand back.

"Hiccup, what are we going to do?"

**AN: Please review! This chapter made me very nervous haha, any questions can be answered on my tumblr xx**


	10. Chapter 10

"Hiccup, what are we going to do?"

We'll... we will make them _see._ They will get over it." - He lied smoothly, he needed time to think. Jack shook his head, frowning.

"I only saw them once and even I know that you are being overly hopeful. They will hate it! Hate me! Hate _us!_"

"Wait, when did you see the-"

His voice was drowned by the loud crowd that passed around them. Everyone was running towards the docks to welcome the others, people were pushing Hiccup along, passing right through Jack. Someone hit his hand, breaking their hold. They reached for each other again, he could hear Astrid's voice in the distance now. Hiccup grabbed his shoulders and raised his head up to look at his worried face.

"I told you before Jack, no one can hate you. And I don't care what they think."

"Jack!" - They both turned to see the kids running towards them, they circled Jack and hugged him, screaming his name, they were all speaking at the same time, it was hard to understand them. Jack laughed, momentarily distracted from Astrid's arrival.

Hiccup stepped back to give them space, people in the village were still excitedly walking towards the bay to welcome everyone back; he took a deep breath and looked back at Toothless, he was a little behind, looking at Hiccup for guidance. The viking knew he would have to face his dad and Astrid sooner or later. Better be sooner.

He followed the crowd, Toothless at his side. He lost Jack somewhere in the back with the children; upon arriving at the bay he saw a lot of the goods that Astrid's group had gathered from the village. Hiccup felt a bitter taste in his mouth. His father was the first one to get off the ship, he waved for Astrid to be at his side; he faced the crowd happily.

"Today, we see the true values of a viking! Brave, ruthless, smart; Astrid has it all. Thanks to her, we will have a much, much more comfortable winter." - He raised his fist - "To Astrid!"

The crowd imitated him in unison, calling her name with a sort of worshipping reverence that worried Hiccup. Her blue eyes scanned the crowd and stopped on his green ones; she gave him a smug smile, which he did not respond. His father spotted him as well.

"I see my son has come to greet us. Step forward, Hiccup." - His tone was serious, Hiccup knew that tone... he didn't like it, but he stepped forward anyway. His dad raised his voice again.

"And so that you all know that Berk will be in good hands when I'm gone, I am arranging for Astrid and Hiccup to be married by the end of the month!" - He smiled widely, Astrid blushed. Hiccup was speechless, as was the crowd.

"NO!" - Jack screamed somewhere on the left. No one looked at him, some of the kids eyed him curiously; Hiccup finally saw him behind some elders. He looked panicked, angry and the viking saw a hint of fear in his eyes, fear of being forgotten. His blood boiled, he was so tired of being pushed around, he turned to his father, his tone matched his.

"No, you're not. I won't marry her." - The crowd gasped. His father looked taken aback and Astrid frowned; a horrible silence followed. People looked uncomfortable, Hiccup held his father eyes for a while, but he quickly glanced at Astrid, who looked pissed off. She moved to speak, but his father held her shoulder back as he spoke again.

"Astrid, help everyone to unload the ships. People! Tonight there will be a celebratory fire for our travelers, please make the preparations!" - The crows dispersed, Astrid stomped off angrily, kicking a rock on her way back to the ships. His father gestured for Hiccup to follow him; they walked together in silence for a bit, Hiccup looked back a few times to see that Jack and the kids were looking in his direction anxiously.

"I thought this was what you wanted. I thought you liked her." - He expected his father to be acusatory, but his tone was concerned and worried.

"It's...complicated dad, I can't explain it. I just don't feel that way about her, not anymore."

His father looked surprised, he blinked a few times before speaking again - "It was brave what you did, standing up for yourself like that. Even if it made me look foolish." - His father hid a smile while he walked, Hiccup smiled too.

"Sorry, my bad, I could have handled it better I guess." - They stopped. His father seemed lost in though, Hiccup blurted out what was bothering him.

"Are you mad that I didn't go on the journey with you?" - His dad scratched his beard as if wondering what the best answer was; he looked Hiccup in the eye.

"Hiccup, if I learned anything this past year, is that you always have reasons for doing the things you do... And I don't always understand them, but I do understand that you always see things from a different perspective, you see more than others... especially more than me, well, most of the time. I hope you understand why I needed to go though, how I needed to provide for my people."

Hiccup scratched the back of his head, he could see his point; but there were better ways to go around about it. He thought that this was progress, not too long ago he wouldn't be able to have a honest discussion with his dad. He nodded, there was nothing more to talk about. He had to go back to Jack and figure out how they would deal with Astrid. He started to walk away to find Jack when his father added, as an afterthought.

"But, keep in mind Hiccup, that Astrid won't be so understanding about this..." - He looked away, observing the village - "The most dangerous feeling in the world is hate that was once love. Keep that in mind."

"I will... thanks dad."

.

He found Jack sitting down by a tree, the kids were gone; Hiccup wondered if they were getting ready for the big fire tonight. It seemed everyone was getting ready for it, there was no one around. Jack's head was between his knees, he was taking deep breaths, his staff laid forgotten by his side. Hiccup kicked some snow on him to call his attention, he smiled down at the guardian. Jack's eyes flashed, and faster than Hiccup could have imagined, he had stood up, grabbed Hiccup and trapped him between the tree and his cold body.

The sudden movement made him dizzy, Jack grabbed his face, he was panicking and breathing heavily, he was so close that Hiccup thought his blue eyes could be the sky. He stuttered hesitantly.

"H-How did it go? What did he say?!" - Before Hiccup could answer, Jack kissed him forcefully, bruising his lips slightly. - "I won't let her marry you! I won't let _anyone _take you away!" - Hiccup put his hand on his cold cheek to meet his eyes.

"Jack, calm down. I told you that I won't choose her; it will always be you Jack, I love you. Stop worrying." - Jack sighed in defeat and kissed him again, he kissed back, grabbing fistfulls of his wool shirt to bring him closer. Jack was holding onto him with a fierce protectiveness, in a way that was borderline possessive, like he was claiming Hiccup with every touch, every kiss.

The viking was vaguely aware that they were supposed to be talking about how to handle Astrid but then Jack moved his hands under his shirt, and all thoughts of Astrid vanished as he moaned softly. How funny that in one second Jack could be this playful guardian who was a kid at heart and then the next he would be pinning you against a tree with his hand under your shirt and his knee between your thighs, kissing you like it was physically impossible to stop.

Jack knew it was childish to be so jealous of Hiccup, but he needed to hear him say that he belonged to him, needed to feel like what they had was strong enough to handle everything that was in their way. Jack had Hiccup against a tree, he liked seeing the viking lose control, Jack himself was having a hard time focusing with him so close. He kept remembering the night before, how it felt to have Hiccup inside him, this time, as he rubbed himself against Hiccup and heard him moan, he wanted to be the one inside him, to feel his warm walls around him, holding him close. Being one forever.

"Hiccup!" - They broke apart as a feminine voice yelled in the distance, Jack squinted his eyes to see better and upon noticing the blond braid he felt a painful knot in his stomach. Astrid was walking towards them, how odd it must seem to her that Hiccup was pinned against a tree by an invisible force; Jack almost wanted to laugh at the thought. Hiccup groaned in frustation at being interrupted, the guardian didn't want to let him go, but he did eventually as she came closer. He took two steps back, noticing that Hiccup had very tinted cheeks and his hair was sticking up all over the place; Jack felt a devilish satisfaction in knowing it was him who made it that way.

"Hiccup! Can't you hear me!?" - Her tone was angry, she must have been really pissed off from earlier. Hiccup seemed to snap out of his lustful haze to look at her, he scratched the back of his head, looking down. She spoke again, angrier than before at his lack of response.

"We need to talk. I need you to tell me exactly _why _you had to make that scene today. In front of the whole village! Have you any idea how embarassed I was? And why are you so flushed? Were you running?"

Hiccup shot a quick glance at Jack before answering. - "Hm, yeah, I was talking to my dad. Listen, Astrid, I'm sorry I embarassed you, but I meant what I said today. We are not good together." - She took a step closer and pushed Hiccup against the tree again, he hit his back painfully. Jack bent down to grab his staff and fought the urge to freeze her, Hiccup looked at him and shook his head a little bit, begging the guardian to let him handle this on his own. Astrid groaned in frustation.

"Look, I know you were mad about the trip and everything. But you told me you liked me before... we kissed! How then can you turn around and say all that, after only two weeks!?" - Her voice roared with anger, and just a little bit of hurt - "TELL ME HICCUP, HOW DOES THAT HAPPEN?"

Guilt overwhelmed Hiccup as he ran his fingers through his hair, everything was so messed up! He wanted to explain to Astrid, but at the same time he was scared of how she would react. He hesitated, she saw it, and in that moment her eyes sharpened, understanding dawning on them.

"Wait... is there someone else? Did you meet someone else?" - Hiccup didn't answer. He couldn't speak, he looked at Jack again. The guardian shrugged his shoulders helplessly, just as lost as he was.

"DID YOU?" - Her voice was so loud it seemed to echo, Hiccup flinched.

"I-I'm sorry Astrid."

"WHO IS IT? TELL ME RIGHT NOW!"

"You need to understand- I-"

"I DON'T NEED TO UNDERSTAND ANYTHING, WHAT I NEED IS FOR YOU TO TELL ME WHO SHE IS."

Oh, Thor, could this get any worse? How could he even being to explain? Hiccup looked up to the sky as if waiting for an answer, he palmed his face and groaned. Astrid grabbed his hand suddenly and eyed the ring; her eyes flashed, Hiccup had never seen so much anger in them. She was no longer screaming though, her voice came out as a low whisper, which was ten times worse.

"A ring? I see. You don't need to tell me, I will find out on my own. And when I do, you two will be very, very sorry." - With that, she walked off towards the village again. Jack released a long held breath.

"Wow."

"We're dead." - Hiccup said simply, as if stating the obvious, Jack hesitated and then nodded in agreement.

"Just...wow." - He scratched his head thoughfully - "Don't worry though, there is no way she can find out... right?"

"Right." - He took Jack's hand and turned them back home, they needed to figure things out where no one could interrupt them.

.

Astrid walked aimlessly throughout the village. Her head was pounding with anger and hurt, how _dared _he? She was being rejected by _Hiccup?_ This couldn't be happening! What happened to that time he took her flying on Toothless, showing her a completely different world than she was used to? Or the goofy way he used to smile at her when he thought she wasn't looking? Was it all just childish liking? Why did it hurt so bad? And who the fuck was this other girl? She kicked a rock that was on her way with a grunt, it landed a few feet away from her. She screamed in frustation and sat down on the snow, head on her knees and blood boiling in her veins.

"Astrid?" - She looked up to see Vikka staring at her, they were almost the same height when she was sitting down. Her bright red hair was braided just like hers, Astrid noted with a smile. She replied weakly.

"Hi, Vikka."

"Why are you sad?" - The little girl sat on the snow beside her, resting her tiny head on her shoulder as a sign of comfort. Astrid sighed, her anger melting away.

"It's... complicated. You will understand someday." - The little girl nodded and spoke again, in that determined way that reminded Astrid so much of her own childhood. It was impossible to remain angry with Vikka around.

"When you're feeling better, I want you to meet Jack." - Astrid frowned, she never heard that name before.

"Who's Jack?"

"Jack Frost! He's Hiccup's friend, he is really fun! We play in the snow a lot."

"I've never seen him before... when did he get here?"

"When it started snowing, see, he brings the snow! I can't really explain it, but he's special."

"Oh." - Astrid paused, what did she mean by special? Bring the snow? Curiosity flared in her stormy eyes - "And you said he was Hiccup's friend?"

"Hmm yeah, they are always together. Jack makes him happy, he is always happy." - The little girl frowned though - "But not this morning, no, this morning Jack was angry. He yelled... I never heard him yell."

"Did he yell at you?!" - Astrid asked protectively, who the hell was this Jack?

"No, not at me, at Hiccup's dad." - The girl scratched her head - "I don't know why though, he didn't even do anything. Jack sure is weird sometimes, but so fun!"

Astrid felt like she was being dim, she was missing something here... And then, like a punch in the face, it clicked.

Oh no, oh _hell no! _

Astrid got up so fast she almost dropped Vikka on her back, she needed to confront him, no, confront _them. _This would not stand.


	11. Chapter 11

**AN: This chapter is rated M for violence and language! **

Astrid couldn't find them anywhere, she looked in every possible place she knew. The more she walked, the angrier she got; at Hiccup, at this Jack person, at everyone. Vikka had explained that you could only see Jack if you believed in him; Astrid noticed that the girl knew she was angry but didn't understand why, the little girl was regretting her words. But it was too late now to take them back, Astrid knew what he looked like and she knew how to see him. The only thing uncertain was what she would do upon seeing him, seeing _them together; _she felt a bitter taste in her mouth at the thought. Where the hell were they?

.

Jack watched the sun set in the sky with a sigh, his head was resting comfortably on Hiccup's lap as the viking ran his skinny fingers through his hair softly; his back against the side of Toothless as the dragon slept. The lake had become a safe haven for them, the only people beside them who knew about the place were the twins, because Hiccup had taken them flying on Toothless on occasion while Jack was gone.

"Your hair looks almost brown in this light." - He said absent-mindedly, his fingers getting lost in the guardian's soft hair.

"Would you love me better if I was human?" - Jack blurted out, the question had been on his mind lately. He couldn't ignore the fact that Hiccup would grow older while Jack stayed frozen, and that thought had terrified him beyond compare. Hiccup stopped, his hand on Jack's forehead.

"No. Would you love me better if I had two legs?"

"No."

"Then shut up."

Jack moved up to sit next to Hiccup, his back also against Toothless's side. They had spent all afternoon talking, Hiccup had told him everything about the conversation with his father, about Astrid and about Toothless; Jack had apologized to the dragon and the Night Fury seemed to be in more friendly terms with him for he let the guardian pet him afterwords. Jack had also talked, about his human life, and his guardian life; how the world looked like beyond Berk and how nothing compared to where he was now, with Hiccup.

"It's gonna be dark soon, don't you want to go the party?"

Hiccup sighed - "I'd rather stay here with you, I'm not ready to face the village yet." - And by village he meant Astrid, he felt guilty for what he had done to her, but he couldn't control the way he felt about Jack. He put his hand over Jack's, he really liked how he looked in this light; it made him think back to that first night he had stayed over; how worried he had been at that time, when he didn't know anything about him, or about love. He kissed Jack softly, but when Jack kissed back hungrily Hiccup let go of his worries. He remembered how it had felt to be so close to Jack, how it had felt when he trashed gently under him, mumbling his name and moaning at every thrust.

Jack stood up and pulled Hiccup with him, they walked hand in hand until they found a good tree, far enough that Toothless couldn't hear them but close enough that they could run back if needed. Jack pushed Hiccup against the tree and started kissing his neck, much like he had done in the early afternoon before they were interrupted. The memory of it ignited Hiccup, and he threw his arms around Jack's neck and the guardian responded by putting the viking's legs around his waist, lifting him off the ground. Snowed surrounded them as they kissed, but at that moment, Hiccup could swear he was on fire.

"Hiccup!" - A voice echoed distantly from the lake.

Jack groaned - "Oh for the love of Thor!" - Hiccup thought it was funny that he was starting to speak in Berk slangs, but he was also annoyed at the interruption. Who could it be now? He made it move away from Jack but the ice teen held him with stronger pressure, his nose teasing the line of his jaw.

"Maybe it's not that important... it can wait" - He kissed Hiccup again and he viking found it difficult to pull away, Jack could be really convincing when he wanted to be. His hands were on Hiccup's lower back, holding him up. Heat was growning between them, it was eletric... Hiccup ached to feel skin on skin; if he could only move his hands a little lower...

"Hiccup! Jack! Where are you?!" - There were two voices now, the couple recognized them as belonging to the twins; the only people who knew about the place. Jack pulled back.

"The kids... the kids need us!" - He looked in the direction of the lake, and then again at Hiccup. He bit his lip, he seemed so torn about what to do; it was sort of endearing. Hiccup untangled himself from Jack and landed on unsteady feet. He held Jack's hand and pulled him in the direction of the lake, after all, the kids needed them.

They had woke Toothless up, the dragon wiggled his tail when he saw Hiccup, the twins came running to hug them, Vikka spoke first.

"Jack! You have to hide!"

"What? Why?"

"Astrid knows about you!" - Her hair was wild and she was crying really hard, her twin brother held her hand in support - "I wanted you to be friends, but she was really mad! I don't know why, but she is looking everywhere for you." - A strangled sob escaped her lips - "It's all my fault, I made her mad and now you won't be friends!"

Hiccup paled. Astrid knew about Jack, and by the look of it, she hadn't reacted very well. Jack had picked up Vikka in his arms and was calming her down with his low voice and soft words, the little girl was nodding onto his shoulder. Soeren was looking at Toothless and soon he had moved to pet the Night Fury. Hiccup let Jack talk to the girl, explain that it wasn't her fault. He approached Soeren and Toothless, the boy seemed disturbed. Hiccup knelt beside him, the boy looked at him sideways.

"I like dragons. People cry, people get angry and people yell... Toothless never yells." - The little boy had his hand on the dragon's nose, Hiccup thought that he was too young to have such convictions about people. Hiccup hesitated, so he spoke again.

"Are you scared?"

"Yes, I don't want anyone to get hurt." - Soeren now looked at him with curiosity.

"It's too late for that... you hurt Astrid, and now she is gonna hurt you." - Hiccup wondered how aware of the situation the boy was... He was much smarter than Hiccup had given him credit for. - "Because that's what people do, right? They hurt each other." - The boy went on. Hiccup grabbed his shoulders to look into his brown eyes, they were exactly like his sister's.

"People also forgive each other, and protect each other... And that is worth something." - The boy stopped petting Toothless - "Dragons are amazing, don't get me wrong. But people... people are pretty cool too." - He looked at Jack over his shoulder, he had managed to make Vikka stop crying, they smiled at each other. Hiccup looked at the boy again, he was petting the Night Fury again, but he was also smiling slightly.

.

Astrid was close now, she had suspected that Vikka had regretted telling her about Jack. Her instinct told her that the little girl knew more than she was letting on. After looking for Hiccup the whole afternoon, she saw the twins go into the woods, into an isolated part of Berk and she just knew that they would lead her towards Hiccup and Jack Frost.

So she followed them, they bickered the whole way, much like siblings do, and they didn't notice that Astrid was behind them. They were a bit ahead though, so she heard them more than she actually saw them, they walked for a long time. And then they took off running, calling their names and she heard conversation. She was so close now that she could see the outline of Toothless, Hiccup and Soeren. Where was Vikka though? And more importantly, where was Jack? She took off running, her anger pushing her on.

.

Vikka had finally stopped crying, Jack was rocking her in his arms to calm her down. He saw Hiccup talking to her brother and smiled at him over his shoulder. This was the closest that Jack ever had to a family in a long, long time. He hugged the girl a little tighter... Something caught his eye, he looked to the side, trying to identify what he had seen. And then, stepping out of the woods, was Astrid. Her hair seemed dirty and knotted and her expression was of barely contained anger, she looked exhausted. Jack put the little girl down, she had seen her too.

"Astrid?!" - Vikka screeched, surprised. Everyone turned to look at her, Hiccup stepped in front of Soeren and Toothless moved to a defensive position. Astrid was looking at Jack, she definetly could see him, her mind was set on seeing him so it wasn't a surprise.

"C-Can you see me?" - Jack asked, he wondered how long it would take for him to get used to people seeing him.

She didn't answer the question, her stormy blue eyes focused on Hiccup instead, and her voice was dangerously calm when she spoke.

"Hiccup, tell Toothless to take the twins back to the village. I don't want them to see this."

Her words sent chills down Jack's spine, Toothless growled in protest but Hiccup nodded in his direction and held eye contact with his friend until the dragon agreed. The kids climbed on Toothless's back, but they kept looking back in worry over their shoulders. The three of them were out of sight eventually and Jack took a deep breath, he was the closest to Astrid. The girl took two steps towards Jack, looked him dead in the eye and gave him the worst wicked smile he had ever seen.

And that's when she jumped him.

It was so unexpected that he lost his balance, they fell and rolled on the snow. Jack was taller and stronger than she was but Astrid had training and practice so they were equally matched. Hiccup screamed and ran to pull them apart. Astrid was on top of Jack, her knees pinning his arms painfully; she pushed Hiccup with her elbow and he landed heavily on the floor, hitting his head on a fallen branch.

"Hiccup!" - Jack tried to turn over but Astrid had a strong hold on him, she was close to his face now, she hissed, the sound barely over a whisper.

"I don't know what the fuck you are, but this ends tonight! You are not even human, and you are a _boy!_ I knew Hiccup was different but I would have never pegged him for a freak!"

She grabbed a knife that was tied to her skirt and lifted it over her head, Jack couldn't move, he couldn't speak, he could only look up to her face. Her eyes were pure hatred and her features were contorted in a horrible way that made Jack think that she was the one that wasn't human, the moonlight shone behind her head, making her hair shine. She brought the knife down.

"NO!" - Hiccup pushed Astrid off, they both fell to the side and rolled on the snow, they were pushing at each other to get the advantage. Jack stood up to help, but then they stopped. Astrid was on her feet and took two steps back, her face was pale. She screamed.

Her knife had found its way to Hiccup's side, it was buried to the hilt on his flesh. He looked down at himself, surprised to see it there. He took the knife out, Jack had never seen so much blood. Hiccup choked, his head fell back and his eyes closed.

"HICCUP!" - Jack ran to kneel beside him, he had his hand on the wound to stop the bleeding, but it was useless. It wasn't stopping, Hiccup was getting whiter and whiter in the moonlight.

"HICCUP!"

Astrid took more steps back, she looked horrified - "No! It wasn't supposed to be him! W-what have I done?" - Jack paid her no attention, his world revolved around the dying boy in his arms. Everything was in slow motion to him, he heard Astrid run off, he felt the warm tears roll down his cheeks. He had never felt so cold.

It was like drowning, no, worse, because Jack knew what drowning felt like and he would have rather drown again a thousand times than see Hiccup die. He was vaguely aware that he was screaming, his throat burned but he didn't stop, he couldn't stop. If he stopped he would have to accept that Hiccup was no longer in the world, that they would never race again, that he would never hear his laugh or witty remarks again. Jack would never feel his lips responding against his own. He bent down to kiss Hiccup but he miscalculated and their teeth clashed painfully, much like their first kiss had been.

Jack cried and held him closer, he was weeping so hard now that it was impossible to breathe. His hands were stained with Hiccup's blood and he could have sworn that his own heart was bleeding too, every beat was begging for Hiccup to open his eyes.

"Hiccup...please...no...HICCUP!" - He choked on every word as he rocked the viking's limp body in his lap, he was cold, so cold in his arms. Jack was completely and utterly alone in the darkness, his sun would never shine again. In that moment Jack felt a part of him break, a part that would never be fixed, he would forever be incomplete and empty. Hiccup was dead and nothing mattered anymore. Hiccup was gone.

.

**AN: Please review! *dodges rocks***


	12. Chapter 12

Toohtless took no time going back to the lake, his big paws made the journey short. He dropped the twins off at the village, they looked worried; Toothless understood the sentiment, he felt a pang of aprehension at leaving Hiccup and Jack alone with Astrid, he felt they needed him more than ever. Upon approaching the lake, he saw Jack's trembling back. He was kneeling in the snow, bent over something, crying loudly and screaming. Toothless couldn't understand the words, they were too raw and too broken.

He looked around for Hiccup and Astrid but they were nowhere to be seen. The dragon took careful steps towards Jack; he sounded like a wounded animal, Toothless had never heard so much pain and desperation in a voice. He got closer and managed to catch a few words.

"Hic...no...you said... you said I would never feel cold again!... you...promised..." - Toothless froze, he finally understood. He was beside Jack in a heartbeat. The ice teen was hugging Hiccup close, that's why he couldn't see it before. There was blood everywhere; on Hiccup, on Jack's hands and even on his face. Toothless looked at the scene with an awful sense of dread, after everything he had done to protect his best friend, after all they've been through together...

And then, suddenly, Toothless felt peace. Like everything would be alright. How odd. He caught himself looking up, right as the moonlight seemed to shine a little brighter over them. He felt powerful, and warm and alive; his big yellow eyes couldn't stop looking at the moon.

.

It was dark, and cold; but he wasn't alone. Hiccup could feel arms around him, and he could vaguely hear a muffled voice, though the words weren't clear. And then, a deeper, lower voice spoke in his mind; it was as if it was coming from inside him.

**Open your eyes.**

Hiccup did, and the first thing he noticed was how big the moon looked, and how immensely beautiful it was. Then he noticed that his face was on someone's shoulder, and that they had their face buried onto the crook of his neck. He could feel the wetness of the tears on his skin, and hear the echoes of the words they were mumbling. The person's touch was cold, but gentle. The deeper voice spoke again.

**You are Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, and you are ready to fulfill your destiny. Rise now, Spirit of Autumn, Guardian of Change.**

Hiccup gasped loudly. What? He looked up at the moon again, the light seemed to have dimmed and the silence in his mind was eerie. He noticed that the person holding him had stopped talking and moving as if frozen. Hiccup saw that it was a tall boy, he had shiny silver hair and his mouth was open in surprise. His hands flew to hold Hiccup's face and the gesture felt familiar to him, and then, the viking looked into his big blue eyes, like iced water, and it all came back to him in flashes.

_"Where did you come from!?" _

_"You- you can see me?"_

"_The stories were true! My name is Jack Frost, I really control the ice, but people can't see me because they think I'm just a story... like, like I'm a ghost, but not really"._

_"Hiccup? That's your name? Are you serious? That is the dumbest name I ever heard!"_

Hiccup felt a fluterring feeling in his stomach as the images kept coming. He closed his eyes to focus on them before they fled from his mind.

_"I'll make them believe you! I'll tell all the village, Jack, I'm going to help you, I'll make sure you never feel invisible again."_

_"I'll make sure you never feel invisible again either, Hiccup."_

"_Yes, you saved her, but who saved you?_

"_You did."_

_The kiss was awkward and weird, and sloppy. But it was also raw, and fire and sincere..._

_"There's snow in my pants."_

_"I never want to feel cold again." - Jack whispered in the dark. Hiccup smiled._

_"You won't."_

"_They'll like you... it's impossible not to." _

_"And that is why I will be back...soon."_

_"How soon!?"_

_"In a heartbeat."_

_"Don't like you? Jack, I love you! _

"_Hiccup, I love you too."_

_"I really missed that stupid smirk."_

_"Hiccup...please...no...HICCUP!" _

"Hiccup?!" - The voice from the images shook him gently, he opened his eyes to look into those blue ones again. He knew who they belonged to now, how could he ever forget.

"Jack."

Jack's breathless laugh hitched in his throat as he smiled, unbelieving. He hugged the viking close again.

"You're OK, you're OK! Oh thank Thor! Hiccup I thought you were dead!" - Hiccup was holding onto him just as tight as Jack was. The relief on his voice was so evident that Hiccup couldn't help to run his hand through Jack's soft hair to calm him down. The guardian pulled away to look at his injury. There was no wound there anymore.

"But...how? I saw... There was so much blood Hic, so much!" - Jack put his cool hand over his ribs where the knife had got him and Hiccup couldn't help to feel a chill. He remembered taking the knife out; he placed his hand over Jack's, willing him to understand.

"The moon... talked to me. I- He brought me back."

Jack's eyes widened, he raised his face to look up at the full moon but before he could form a response, the deep voice spoke again, to both of them.

**Find the others.**

And then the light dimmed even more and Hiccup could tell that the voice would not speak again.

"Find the others? What does that mean?"

"You tell me, you're the smart one!" - Jack replied playfully but stopped mid-laugh, his fingers splayed against Hiccup's cheek. He whispered in a serious tone.

"I'm so glad you are alive. When you... died... it almost killed me too, I was so scared, I just-" - Jack's voice had started to hitch as if he was holding back tears. Hiccup held him as Jack rested his head on his skinny shoulder.

"I'm here Jack, it's alright. Shh, it's alright." - He saw Toothless sitting a small distance away from them, his big eyes were still looking at the moon, but he turned to look at Hiccup as he felt his friend's gaze on him. Toothless stood up on his legs and cocked his head slightly to the side.

_Are you still hurt?_

Hiccup froze. Had he _heard_ Toothless's words as if spoken? It was like reading the dragon's mind.

"Did-Did the moon talk to you too?" - It was so weird talking to Toothless like this, but at the same time, it wasn't much different from how they usually communicated. Hiccup could easily tell what Toothless thought most of the time anyway. Jack raised his head.

"No, he didn't. Wait, what else did he say to you?" - It took a moment for Jack to notice the direction of the viking's gaze. He looked over his shoulder at the Night Fury.

_He told me I was a guardian._

"He told me I was a guardian." - Toothless and Hiccup spoke in unison, Jack, however, only heard Hiccup. His eyes widened as he waited for the viking to explain.

"He said I was... the spirit of Autumn, Guardian of Change." - Toothless nodded and Jack looked mildly dumbstruck. - "Jack... I can hear Toothless's thoughts."

Jack raised his eyebrow and smirked - "Couldn't you always?"

"Yeah, but now, I can actually hear the words in his head."

"Oh." - Jack shrugged his shoulders, he had stopped crying. Hiccup was amazed at how easily he could change his mood, he figured that Jack had experienced a lot in the last few weeks, he was still learning how to deal with it all.

He looked over at Toothless and smiled, the Night Fury smiled back and moved to lick his face. Hiccup giggled as they both stood up, the viking's legs felt a bit wobbly, Jack put his hand on his lower back for support. Toothless's eyes were focused on the ground, but not on his feet as Hiccup thought, but at the bloody knife beside him. His yellow eyes met Hiccup's.

_Where is Astrid?_

.

She had to keep running.

If she stopped, she would have to face what she had done, and Astrid didn't think she was ready for it. Tears rolled down her face but she didn't stop running, she had no idea where she was going; suddenly she tripped on a fallen branch and scraped her knees on the ground. She sat down and wept. She was so stupid! Hiccup wasn't supposed to have pushed her off of Jack, but then again, she couldn't think of a time when Hiccup had actually done what he was supposed to.

She grabbed a fistfull of her hair to clear her thoughts. Stupid Jack Frost, with his innocent face and bright eyes. When she had looked at him, she could almost see why he would grab Hiccup's attention. He had a kind face and playful stance, as if ready to have fun. She almost hesitated jumping him, but her battle instincts took over as her rage fueled her on. Astrid knew that if she had stopped to think, she wouldn't have tried to hurt him. But she didn't think, she wanted to act. She was so sick of feeling powerless! And now she had nothing. She remembered something her mother had told her, long ago, when she was a toddler that wouldn't share her toys with anyone.

_If you're too generous, I'll eventually end up with nothing. But if you're too selfish, you'll eventually end up with no one._

The words echoed in her head, beating at her brain. Why couldn't she have listened?! She was selfish, and now Hiccup was gone and the only person to have ever touched her heart was dead, dead by _her _hand. He was the real viking, brave and smart. She was the coward one that couldn't accept his happiness, who had to mess everything up. Astrid had always thought that pride was a virtue, but she saw it now for the poison that it really was. How it clouded your thoughts and bittered your heart until you were cold and empty and alone.

She stood up and touched her tears. No, she hasn't been brave, but she would be now. She would tell all the village what she had done, and she would face the consequences; she wouldn't expose Jack, she owed him at least that much. But everyone would know that Hiccup was dead because of her foolish actions, and that she was undeserving of being a future leader. She stood up and started running again, this time towards the village, where the celebration was still going on obliviously.

.

Hiccup never felt better, he was stronger and Toothless seemed to be flying faster. They were heading towards the village, the viking wanted to find Astrid and try to do some damage control. Jack was flying beside him, he had been strangely quiet the whole time.

"Where do you think she headed?"

Jack shrugged his shoulders, uninterested. Hiccup knew better though, he was hiding his feelings in a seemingly bored and controled mask.

"Jack, stop." - He pulled on Toothless's saddle so the dragon would stop flying forward, batting his wings so they would stay in one place. Jack stopped also, his eyes were angry.

"What? I thought you couldn't wait to rush back to Astrid." - His tone was sharp. Hiccup opened his mouth to respond, but Jack beat him to it.

"After all, it wasn't like she _stabbed you. _Wasn't like she murdered you without even blinking, you want to go talk to her _again!"_

"She can't hurt me again, Jack, I'm a guardian now."

"Yeah, well, I was a guardian when she raised the knife on me, but that didn't stop you from being stupid and jumping on her!" - He took a shallow breath - "And now you expect me to let her near you again! And you can't even see why I can't stand for her to even_ look_ at you again, much less _touch you!"_

"It was an accident, you know she didn't mean to... she has a temper."

Jack was getting agitated - "A temper?! No, Yetis have tempers! Astrid is fucking crazy! She tried to kill me, and then she _did kill you! _I will never forgive her for that! ... And why are you being so understanding about this? She took away your chance of a normal life!"

"Normal life?! What kind of life would that be? Getting older and sicker as you stay frozen in time? Seeing you travel all over the world while I'm stuck in Berk? Without you?!" - He spit the words, the argument was making him angry as well, Jack was so aggravating!

Jack was speechless. He didn't know what to think anymore, he had wanted Hiccup to live a normal and happy life. But now that wasn't possible, he was a guardian too, and he didn't understand what that meant! He didn't understand that immortality was not a gift, but a curse, Jack hadn't been aware enough to see his family die, but Hiccup would. And it would pain him, and therefore it would pain Jack too.

"Being a guardian is a heavy burden Hiccup, sometimes unbearable." - He was calmer now, Hiccup's tone also softened.

"Then we'll bear it together."

.

Astrid tumbled onto the village clumsily, she was so tired of running and crying, but she had to keep pushing on. She saw the twins, they were with the other laughing kids, though their expressions seemed worried. They saw her standing there, with dirt on her face and blood in her hands. She turned to the other side, Astrid knew that the twins would never forgive her for this, she couldn't stand to meet their gaze.

"Astrid! What happened to you?!"

She froze. Oh no. Stoick's voice was gentle and concerning, he was starting to treat her like she was his own daughter. She felt bile rise up in her throat as she remembered Hiccup's face when the knife had got in, surprise with a hint of pain and betrayal. She slowly turned to meet the older viking's gaze, he saw the tears on her face, and her messy hair. He placed his hand on her shoulder.

"Are you hurt? What happened?"

"I- I'm so sorry! It was accident! I- I- ... H-Hiccup..." - His hand squeezed her shoulder when he heard his son's name, understanding was dawning on his incredulous face.

"W-What did you do?"

"I was so, so angry... and we were fighting, the knife, I didn't mean to! I- I" - She was crying too hard now to be able to speak properly, she raised her hands to her face to take her dirty hair out of her eyes, Stoick grabbed her hand to see the blood on her fingers. He made the connection, his eyes widened.

"WHAT DID YOU DO? ASTRID, WHERE IS HE?"

"H-He was by the lake, I-I don't remember how to get there exactly!" - She was desperate, she had only found the way because she had followed the twins, there was no way she could find it again.

"I WANT TO SEE HICCUP, YOU TELL ME RIGHT NOW WHERE HE IS!"

"We'll take you there." - They both looked down to see the twins standing behind Astrid, Vikka was the one that had spoken. Astrid wondered how long they had been standing there, their faces were grim. Stoick nodded, defiance clear in his eyes. He would only believe that Hiccup was dead if he saw it for himself.

.

They were about half way to the village when Jack saw something beneath him. The snow reflected the moonlight in a way that was possible for him to see the twins, Astrid and Hiccup's dad walking towards the lake. Vikka and Soeren were leading them, Astrid had her eyes to the ground and her shoulders were slumped. Hiccup's dad was looking around anxiously, it hit Jack that Astrid had told them what she had done. He gestured for Hiccup to look, and the viking's eyes widened when he saw his dad.

"Jack, they can't see me yet! Call out for the twins!"

Jack did, and the children looked up, first with glee at seeing the guardian. But as they got closer, the twins looked horrified, Jack was puzzled until he realized there was still some dry blood on his face, neck and hands.

"Why did you stop?" - Stoick was getting impatient. The twins didn't reply, they just kept looking at Jack, as if to see if he was hurt anywhere else.

"Kids, I'm okay." - Jack assured them, he looked over at Astrid, her eyes were glued on him. She too had noticed the blood, the colour had drained from her face. He regarded her with a guarded expression. Astrid was surprised that she didn't see hate in his ice blue eyes. She saw disappointment and a little anger mixed with curiosity, it made her feel worse than she already did. She deserved his anger, she was expecting it. It was everything she had ever known.

Jack was looking at Astrid, the girl was a mess. He couldn't hate her, her regret was plain on her face to see. Hiccup beside him wasn't even looking at her, his eyes were on his dad. Stoick looked confused, and when no one answered his question, he realized that there was more than they were telling him and so he waited for some sort of explanation. The old viking noticed that everyone was looking at the same spot a little ahead, he squinted, trying to see something, but all that he saw was thin air. It made him uncomfortable.

"Can someone explain to me what is this about? Where is Hiccup?" - Hiccup jumped when his had spoke his name, he wanted so badly to explain everything. The twins looked a bit lost, and Jack was still looking at Astrid. Looking at those eyes, she made a split second decision. She cleared her throat and spoke.

"There is something you need to know about first, Stoick. Actually, someone. His name is Jack... Jack Frost."

**AN: Please review! Any questions can be answered on my tumblr, there will be one more chapter after this one :) (I explained better on tumblr) thank you all! xx judis**

**oh! and the quote about being too selfish and ending up with no one it's not mine! I saw it someone on tumblr, if someone knows the source, I'll be glad to mention it :)**


	13. Chapter 13

"Jack Frost? You mean the ancient legend? Astrid, everyone has heard that story, it is older than time itself." - He sounded impatient, Hiccup knew his dad and it wouldn't be long before he lost his temper.

Jack bit his tongue not to reply, he was not _that_ old! Hiccup shot him a side glance and brushed the back of his cold hand with his skinny knuckles, Jack got distracted by the gesture. This was important to Hiccup, they needed to set the record straight. Astrid's shrieking voice brought him back to the conversation, she sounded desperate and a bit mad.

"You have to believe me Stoick, he is more than just a legend! Jack is very, very real, and if you only believe in him you will see it too! Hiccup saw him!"

"And what does he have to do with Hiccup? I just want to see my son! Astrid, I don't have time for silly, childish stories!"

"That's just it! He has _everything_ to do with Hiccup!"

Stoick frowned and silence followed. It felt like no one was breathing; and then Vikka took a step forward to grab Stoick's hand. Her voice was determined when she spoke.

"Do this for him, please. Believe in Jack, do it for Hiccup. He is not a story, but you need to close your eyes and believe!"

Stoick looked down at the little girl, something in the back of his mind told him to trust her. He was so worried about Hiccup he thought he would be sick, and they all seemed so determined for him to "see" that Stoick had no other choice but to close his eyes and take a deep breath.

He tried to remember everything he knew about the legend of Jack Frost. His grandmother used to tell it sometimes when it was really cold; about the boy who was as mischievous as we was kind. Bringing chills but also laughter, cold and yet somehow always making people feel warm. When he finally opened his eyes the first thing he saw was a tall, thin, pale teenager. He had white hair and really pale blue eyes, there was dried blood on his cheek and hands. Stoick took a step back in surprise.

"What in Thor's name..."

"Y-You can see me?" - Jack had lost count of how many times he had asked that question and he felt that fluttering feeling of happiness in his stomach at someone believeing in him. He was sure he would never get tired of it. Hiccup's dad had dropped his jaw in surprise as he nodded slowly. Astrid and the twins breathed a sigh of relief.

"Where's Hiccup?!" - Stoick's voice was commanding now, he took a step closer to Jack, his green eyes were intense and desperate. Jack found himself speaking the truth, not out of fear what he might do to him, but because it was the right thing to do.

"He's here, right beside me." - At that Astrid gasped, and the twins stared in surprise.

"But Astrid said... the blood..."

"Astrid did what she thought was right." - Jack interrupted Stoick, gently but firmly. Astrid looked at him in confusion, what was he up to? - "She saw me as a threat to the village, and in trying to protect Hiccup she accidently hurt him... badly." - That was the understatement of the year, Jack hoped his voice wasn't shaking. He could feel Hiccup's eyes on him, wondering why he was protecting Astrid.

"That still doesn't explain what you meant when you said he was beside you!" - Jack could hear his impatience, he looked up at the moon for guidance. He needed to say everything right.

"There is much you don't understand. Hiccup is no longer living but he is not dead either... he is like a ghost, but not _really. _You could say that he is like me now, a spirit, a story... a Guardian."

The twins gasped in surprise and Astrid looked like someone had hit her in the head with a very heavy object. Stoick looked like he was holding back tears. He shook his big head in denial, his thick beard flowing everywhere.

"I don't believe you! My son is not gone!" - He grabbed Jack by the front of his vest and pulled him up until they were face-to-face. He was so much taller than Jack that his feet weren't touching the ground. He was so surprised at the sudden move that he lost his breath. Hiccup reached for Jack to try to free him, but it was futile. Stoick was much too strong. - "Show me where he is RIGHT NOW!" - Stoick didn't seem to see that he was choking Jack in his despair.

"Dad! Let him go!" - It did no good, no one was seeing him. How frustating! Hiccup wondered how Jack dealt with being ignored for so long. It had been not even a full hour for Hiccup and he was already going insane. He needed his dad to let go of Jack. He thought back at the moon telling him he was the spirit of autumn; that had to come with some cool, if not useful powers, right?

He closed his eyes and focused. He hoped he had some good abilities, he always associated Autumn with dying leaves and wind. If he had the stupid power of turning leaves brown he would be very angry. But as he took a deep breath, he felt it. The chilly autumn wind was under his control, he could feel it on his skin, hear it bend to his will. It was part of him, easy as breathing.

All Jack could see was Stoick's face in front of his, his eyes were misty and his mouth contorned in an angry snarl; he was huge! Jack suspected that the man's hand was the size of his head. He was shaking Jack back and forth while yelling words that the teen couldn't understand. And then, suddenly, what seemed like a big ball of wind hit the bigger man and Stoick let go. Jack fell on the cold ground, his legs were a bit shaky, but he managed to keep standing. He looked back at Hiccup, his jaw dropping.

Hiccup could feel Jack's gaze on him, but he was focused on his dad. Surprise filled his expression as he looked at where Hiccup was standing. Stoick's eyes searched in the direction where the attack had come from, but there was only endless florest ahead of him. His eyes went to Jack Frost, who was looking at the air beside him with surprise and, was that pride in the ice teen's face? Stoick realized they were closer than he had thought, and he adressed the ice teen much more calmly.

"Do you speak the truth? Jack Frost, that wind that just hit me, was that my Hiccup?"

Jack nodded. He spoke to the whole group, the twins and Astrid had matching expressions of shock and confusion.

"You all need to believe in him as well, like you did with me. Close your eyes, it makes it easier, you know, to see." - Hiccup could almost hear the characteristic smirk in his voice, he would have laughed if the situation wasn't so tense.

Stoick closed his eyes once more and thought of Hiccup as a baby, big green eyes like his own and chubby, curious hands; and how he had grown up to be a true viking, and all the times that he was proved wrong by him; he now knew how strong and brave Hiccup was and Stoick had never been more proud. But at the same time, he felt that sensation of loss deep in his chest. If Jack was right, then Hiccup would stay forever as he was now, a young boy. Stoick had a sudden vision of a older Hiccup, taller, much more confident... maybe a leader? Stoick knew that losing Hiccup was a major setback in Viking history. He would have been great. He would have been the best.

Astrid was so, so tired. When her eyes closed she saw everything that had happened in the past few days. She would have never imagined that her story with Hiccup would go down this path. She wondered if things would have been different had she been more understanding, more gentle. But she soon let go of that thought; changing herself wouldn't have worked, she realized with great sorrow that she was not right for Hiccup. They were opposites, however not in a way in which they would have completed each other. She felt Vikka hold her hand, it was small and warm against hers. Astrid smiled for the first time in weeks. It was a small smile, like the ones you have at the end of the day, when the sun is setting and the night breeze touches your face. The kind of smile that buries old feelings but also tugs at new hopes, long forgotten.

Everyone was so quiet and that was just fine by Soeren. He liked the silence, he didn't want to close his eyes but he did anyway. He wanted to believe in them soon so he could see the dragon again. Toothless was so cool! Soeren liked dragons way more than he liked people. Dragons liked silence too. They didn't need words to express how they felt and Soeren could sympathize with that. He did feel kinda bad for Hiccup, but there was nothing we could do. He wished they didn't have to go eventually, life had been much more interesting with them around.

Hiccup scratched the back of his head, feeling uncomfortable. Everyone had their eyes closed and they seemed so focused, it made the viking wonder what they were thinking. He looked sideways at Jack, who was resting holding his staff behind his head. The ice teen eyed Hiccup's dad and mouthed to Hiccup, as not to break everyone's concentration.

_That was a good shot._

Hiccup looked down, embarassed. His new powers were definetly useful, but he hadn't meant to strike with such force.

_I need some practice._

Jack's smirk was clear as he mouthed his answer back with a wink. _Just a bit._

They all opened their eyes and looked straight at Hiccup. The young viking shuffled his feet shyly at the attention, he looked over from the twins, to Astrid and finally to his dad. Soeren was looking at Toothless; Vikka was looking at Jack. His dad seemed frozen in place and there were tears streaming down Astrid's face as she fell to her knees in front of Hiccup.

"I'm so sorry! So sorry! Hiccup! It's all my fault! I- I just!" - Her sobbings were steady and heartbroken, Hiccup patted her awkwardly on the shoulder, assuring her that everything was okay, that things were meant to be this way. After a while she calmed herself down, and turned to face Jack.

"I need to apologize to you too, Jack, I was a horrible person and I don't deserve any sort of forgiveness or kindness. Thank you for covering for me earlier, but I will speak the truth and take responsability for what I've done." - Jack nodded in understanding, and she turned to the twins, drying her tears with her now steady fingers. She grabbed each twin by their hand and left, taking them home with her. The kids waved Hiccup goodbye. Their matching red heads disappearing in the deep forest.

Hiccup took a step forward towards his father. - "Dad, I-" He was cut off as Stoick closed the distance between them and hugged him tight. Hiccup found it hard to breathe, but it was oddly okay. It felt good to be hugged by his dad, it somehow made things easier.

"This- This is a lot to take in, I will need some time to accept... all of this" - He gestured to both Hiccup and Jack. - "And I will see that Astrid pays for what she did, I don't care how sorry she is." - Hiccup said nothing, he knew there was no arguing with his dad. Stoick went on. - "I just need to know that you are happy. Hiccup, will you be alright? ... This, this is not the life I had hoped for you. But, I always felt deep down that you were destined to greater things. So as much as this hurts, I will let you go, my boy, my son, my Hiccup."

"Thank you, dad." - They clung together for a long time in silence after that.

.

The warm, damp cloth felt funny on Jack's hands, but he twisted it anyway, letting most of the water run down his arm. There was a small fire going on Hiccup's small room; Toothless was sound asleep already, all the different emotions and excitement of the day had taken its toll on the dragon. Hiccup was sitting on the bed, his gaze was focused on the flames, his usually green eyes looking almost like the colour of maple leaves in september.

"Ok, pull up your shirt and let me see." - Hiccup did as he was told, and Jack saw the smooth, freckled skin where Astrid's knife once was. The area had dried blood and dirt all over it, Jack started to gently rub the skin with the cloth, cleaning it up.

"You're dirty too." - Hiccup said almost absent-mindedly. - "Your face...and neck."

"Oh yeah, I forgot." - Jack wiped his face with his sleeve, but it only made it worse. Hiccup's lip curled up in a smile at that, and he grabbed the cloth to clean Jack up too. The action was almost therapeutic; the small circular motions and the sound of the fire crackling against the burning wood made it easy for Hiccup to think.

Jack could clearly see that Hiccup was zoned out on his own little world. Maybe he was thinking of his dad; it had been very hard for them to say godobye back there in the forest. It was easy even for Jack to see that their relationship was of honest affection and love. He wished he could comfort him, but at moments like this Jack felt like an awkward child, he didn't know how to talk to people and most of the time he didn't really have to. A snowball and some jokes were enough; but it wasn't this time. Jack felt that for the first time Hiccup was really facing the life ahead of him.

"Jack?"

"Hmm?"

"I was thinking.. about what the Man in the Moon said, you know. _Find the others_. What do you reckon he meant?"

Jack shrugged his shoulders - "Dunno, aren't you the smart one?"

"Oh haha am I? and that makes you what?" - Hiccup teased. Jack was always saying things like that, it made him feel all warm inside.

"The funny one, of course!" - Jack said with a stupid pout so genuine that Hiccup laughed out loud.

"Great! Now all we need is the pretty one and the bossy one, and we're a set!" - Hiccup was still laughing until he saw the expression on Jack's face change from amusement to surprised curiosity.

"Hiccup...that's it! Think about it! He said you were the guardian of autumn, the smart one and I remember when he said I was the guardian of winter and fun... what if..."

Hiccup caught on - "The other seasons! Summer and Spring! They must be out there! Other guardians... the pretty and the bossy one!"

"Hiccup that's ridiculous, we both know I am also the pretty one... and you are definitely bossy when you want to be." - Hiccup blushed slightly at his words, but he was too enthralled with their recent discovery. - "That makes a lot of sense, he wants us to find the others...And you said you weren't smart!"

"Oh, so I am the funny, the pretty and the smart one? I'm really liking this conversation, Hic."

Hiccup threw a pillow at his face and rolled his eyes. Jack dodged just in time and moved to peck Hiccup mischievously on the cheek.

"So, what do we do now?"

"Well, if we really need to find them.. it won't be here in Berk. Hiccup, you finally get you wish, we'll travel far and wide. I'll show you everything, I won't stop talking until you know every single detail of every single place, ha!"

"Ever heard the saying 'be careful what you wish for'?" - His sarcastic tone was all too familiar to Jack.

"Oh shut up! It will be great...but, make sure you tie up all your, erm, loose ends okay?" - Jack spoke carefully as he sensed Hiccup's mood going south, he pushed the vikings bangs out from his face - "I don't us to leave with any regrets." -

Hiccup groaned. - "Ugh, for now, can we just sleep? This day needs to end."

Jack nodded, they cuddled in the small bed together and the young viking was soon fast asleep. But Jack couldn't help but to think things through... _This day needs to end. _How funny that, for Jack, this day felt like just the beginning.

.

They both missed the sunrise on the next morning. Even Toothless slept through it, he was so tired. Hiccup woke up with the strong sunlight in the room, he figured it was about noon by the brightness. He realized a little late that the reason he woke up was because someone was knocking on the door. He stepped carefully around Toothless as not to wake him or Jack. He opened the door to find Astrid standing on the other side.

Her face was puffy as if she hadn't slept well, she was dressed in clean clothes, still in army gear and her braid was redone over her shoulder. She seemed tired, but there was an odd sense of peace in her that made Hiccup relax his alarmed stance.

"There was a village meeting today. To decide my future." - She would look everywhere but him as she went on - "Everyone knows now... I will be exiled."

Hiccup took a deep breath in surprise and she finally looked at him.

"Don't make that stupid face, it won't be that bad. You said yourself once, that there were better ways to visit other villages than to pillage them. And now I will know first hand what is like to live peacefully among them... so I guess you were right in the end...it's annoying how you always are."

"Astrid, I-"

"Save it. It's not your fault, and besides, it will be for the best." - She gave him a tentative smile - "So I guess this is goodbye." - Hiccup nodded and looked down.

"I'm sorry I couldn't be the hero you wanted."

Her smile was still in place, but it looked sadder now.

"Who says you weren't?" - And with a nod, she walked away. Hiccup knew at that moment that he would never see her again.

.

Jack rolled over, expecting to find Hiccup's small, warm frame next to him. He opened his eyes in surprise as the space felt empty and chilly. He sat up and looked around the room, Toothless was sound asleep next to the bed. There were some dried leaves on the bed where Hiccup had been sleeping, which made Jack smirk. Autumn was here indeed.

Feeling completely awake now, Jack called out for Hiccup but there was no response. He walked out the house to see the whole village united in the distance, looking at a departing ship. Hiccup was a few feet away from him, looking at the boat and scratching his head thoughtfully. The mood around the whole thing seemed a bit grim; Jack couldn't help but notice that the village kids looked very sad.

"What is going on, Hic?"

Hiccup didn't respond at first, he curled his lips as if the words had run away from him. Jack stepped closer and saw that there was sadness in his eyes. Jack knew him enough to know not to push him, so he decided to distract the viking with what he knew best.

"Hey, the kids look a bit sad. How we call them out from there to play in the snow a bit? I'll make it extra fluffly."

"I thought we needed to leave?"

"We can stay another day, can't we? It's not like those clueless soon-to-be guardians have any idea what is coming for them."

Hiccup chuckled.

"Yeah, okay, let's get them out of there... it might be fun."

"_Might?_ Oh Hic, you know better than that." - Jack packed a snowball behind his back and threw it as Hiccup's face so fast the viking didn't even had time to blink. Jack took off running as Hiccup grabbed some snow in his hands, their laughter echoing througout the village, loud enough to be heard by the kids.

.

Hiccup didn't see the day go by. They spent the whole afternoon playing with the kids and Toothless. It was easy for them to believe in Hiccup once they had been touched by Jack's magic. The day was very cold, but oddly beautiful. And it was all over way too soon; as the sun went down the kids returned home.

Jack collapsed on a snow bank. Those kids really wore him out! But it had been worth it, he was able to make Hiccup forget about things for a while, and he secretly considered the whole a sort of goodbye thing for the kids. Though he felt he needed to do something extra special for Vikka and Soeren. Those kids were like family to him, he felt protective of them, they had been through a lot for 6-year olds.

Hiccup sighed and sat next to him on the snow, he was looking up at the setting sun with a content smile on his face. Jack remembered first seeing him in this light, it seemed like yesterday but at the same time, it was like a thousand years had passed since.

"It's rude to stare, Jack."

The ice teen blushed and laughed it off. Only Hiccup could make him feel embarassed like this, Jack thought he would never get tired of it. He reached over and nipped Hiccup at his nose gently. The viking laughed and interwound their fingers together, he could feel the rings he had made for them, the simple silver band feeling cold against their warming skin.

"Ready to go?" - Hiccup whispered softly, he was ready.

"Almost. There's just one more thing I need to do. Come with me?"

"Sure, Jack, I'll go with you."

.

Vikka was preparing for bed, she had had so much fun with Jack and the others today. She couldn't wait to play with them some more. She usually hated the winter and the cold wet snow. But she was changing her convictions on the subject. She eyed Soeren sitting on his bed, busy with making a drawing of a dragon. It looked just like Toothless. Vikka would never understand why he liked dragons so much, she'd much rather play with her dolls or braid her hair.

She sat on her bed and covered her chilly legs, she could feel her heavy lids start to lull her to sleep. And then, suddenly, Soeren stopped drawning and looked at the window, he made a small surprised sound. She looked to see what had scared him and felt her mouth open in a big smile when she saw Jack and Hiccup standing outside.

She moved to open the window to let them in, Jack had snow in his hair and lashes, as usual, but she was surprised to see that Hiccup had dried leaves on his brown hair. He didn't even seemed to have noticed, he was looking at Soeren and at the drawning on his lap with curiosity.

Silence fell between the four of them, until finally Jack cleared his throat and spoke carefully.

"Kids... We should tell you. After tomorrow, Hiccup and I won't be around anymore... at least for a while."

"But why!?" - Soeren had beaten Vikka to the punch, speaking with as much force as she had even seen.

"There is something we need to do. Better yet, someone we need to find. It's our destiny... you understand that, don't you?" - Hiccup spoke looking at Soeren eye-to-eye. The little boy hesitated for a second before nodding. Vikka was sad as well, but she understood. There were people out there who needed them more than she did.

Jack smiled - "However, we wouldn't leave without giving you guys goobye... and something to remember us by." - Hiccup jerked his head in the direction of Soeren's drawing and Jack nodded, smiling even wider.

And then, as he moved his staff in weird, cool patterns, a mist of ice materialized in the exact shape of the dragon the red haired boy had been drawning. With a piece of string that Hiccup had in his pocket, Jack made a necklace and placed it around the boy's ice dragon was about the size of a big coin.

"Don't worry. I made it so it won't melt, but you will also not feel its cool against your skin. It will last forever, as long as you care for it."

"T-Thank you."

Jack looked at Vikka next and seemed to be searching her over, probably for something that represented her enough to be put in a necklace. With a laugh, his eyes scanned her hair and he moved his staff to make a curling sculpture of ice. It looked like a curl of her hair, it was about the size of a thumb. It was beautiful.

As Jack bent over to put the necklace over her head, she hugged his middle. He froze for a second before hugging her back. She figured he still wasn't that used to human touch. He waved both the twins goodbye, as did Hiccup. Toothless was still looking from outside, and he licked the window in a sign of affection, making them all giggle. Still, Soeren laughed the loudest.

.

The twin's house was just a spot in the horizon now. They had been flying for some time, trying to decide where to go next. The night wasn't windy, everything seemed quiet and peaceful, only their voices echoing in the skies.

"No offense Jack, but I am ready to go someplace warm!" - The winter spirit laughed beside him.

"No problem, as long as you fan me with several long leaves so I'll keep cool, we're all good."

"Ugh, stop with the leaves jokes already!"

"You love them, admit it."

"Oh yeah, I thrive on them... can't you tell by my happy face?" - Hiccup gave Jack a big, mocking fake smile that was begging to be wiped from his face.

"I can tell a lot from your face Hic, not sure you want to hear them all though" - he teased.

"We have time, go right ahead, what is my face telling you right now?" - Hiccup had barely finished the sentence when Jack kissed him full on the lips, their teeth clashing a bit due to the sudden contact.

"It's telling me we should stop talking." - And he moved to kiss the viking again.

It was hard for Hiccup to kiss him back, he was smiling too much.

**AN: well guys, that's it! I hoped you enjoyed reading this story as much as I liked writing it :)**

**Please leave a review, I would really love to hear your thoughts on this!**

**Any questions can be answered on my tumblr: **

**thank you for everything, this had been a crazy experience haha **

**xxxx judis**


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